Charles  W.  Thomas.  Serelda  Gilstrap-Thomas. 

Charles  W.  Thomas,  Jr. 


The  Thomas  Collection. 

(MISCELLANEOUS    LIBRARY.) 


"Although  most  of  my  friends  are  toad  arithmeticians, 
they  are  all  good  book-keepers."— Walter  Scott. 


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University  of  California  •  Berkeley 


THE 


GOLD-SEEKER 


FROM  THE  GERMAN. 


BY  THE 

REV.  LEVI   C.  SHEIP,  A.  M 


PHILADELPHIA  : 

LUTHERAN    PUBLICATION    SOCIETY. 
1883. 


This  translation  is  respectfully  inscribed  to 
the  pupils  of  the  Doylestown  Borough  Public 
Schools,  in  whose  welfare  the  translator  is  deep- 
ly interested. 


Copyright,  1883, 

BY  THE 

LUTHERAN  PUBLICATION  SOCIETY. 


WESTCOTT  &  THOMSON, 
St€reatypers  and  Electretypers,  Philada, 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 
THE  Two  BROTHERS 5 


CHAPTER  II. 
THE  EMIGRANT 23 

CHAPTER  III. 
BE  CAREFUL  WHOM  YOU  TRUST 40 

CHAPTER   IV. 
THE  FIRST  JOYS  OF  THE  GOLD-COUNTRY 72 

CHAPTER  V. 
THE  TREASURE 97 

CHAPTER  VI. 

A  NEW  DISCOVERY 130 

3 


4  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   VII.  PAGB 

NEW  JOYS  AND  NEW  SORROWS 154 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
BROTHER-LOVE 176 


THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE    TWO  BROTHERS. 

YOU  may  not  be  acquainted  with  the 
charming  valleys  of  the  Rhine.  They 
surpass  many  other  portions  of  the  German 
fatherland.  They  excel  not  only  in  romantic 
beauty,  but  also  in  fertility  and  the  rich  prod- 
ucts of  the  soil,  and  in  the  untiring  industry 
and  good  nature  of  the  inhabitants. 

Leaving  the  picturesque  banks  of  the 
Rhine  on  a  summer  day  for  a  stroll,  and 
taking  a  foot-path  to  the  right  or  left  lead- 
ing into  one  of  these  valleys,  we  find  luxu- 
riant fields  with  waving  seas  of  golden  har- 

1*  5 


6  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

vest.  Large  orchards  are  laden  with  immense 
quantities  of  ripening  fruit.  Terraced  hills 
are  seen  clad  in  the  green  vine-leaf,  beneath 
which,  in  the  warm'  rays  of  the  sun,  ripen 
great  clusters  of  luscious  grapes.  Clapper- 
ing  mills,  whose  huge  sluggish  water-wheels 
turn  incessantly,  mingle  their  "  tic-a-tack " 
with  the  rippling  waters  of  murmuring 
streamlets.  Best  of  all,  we  meet  here  also, 
for  the  most  part,  a  cheerful,  contented  and 
social  people.  They  pass  their  days  free 
from  care,  but  they  also  enjoy  with  thank- 
ful hearts  the  rich  blessings  with  which  our 
heavenly  Father,  the  Giver  of  all  good,  has 
so  lavishly  crowned  their  native  valley. 

In  such  a  valley — one  of  the  most  beau- 
tiful and  fertile  of  the  Rhine  region — there 
dwelt,  not  long  ago,  two  brothers,  Ernst  and 
George  Reinberg,  to  whom  their  deceased 
father,  whose  only  children  they  were,  had 
left  a  comfortable  patrimony.  After  his  de- 


THE   TWO    BROTHERS.  / 

cease,  as  designated  in  the  will,  his  posses- 
sions were  divided  into  two  equal  portions. 
The  one  embraced  the  farm,  with  the  or- 
chards and  a  fine  stock  of  cattle ;  the  other 
consisted  of  a  large  handsome  mill,  with  the 
vineyards,  which  were  under  the  best  culti- 
vation and  planted  with  choicest  vines.  The 
portions  had  such  nearly  equal  value  that  it 
would  have  been  difficult  to  decide  between 
them  had  a  choice  been  required. 

But  old  Herr  Reinberg  thoughtfully  pro- 
vided against  such  a  contingency.  In  his 
will  he  had  ordered  that  his  sons  should 
determine  their  respective  portions  by  lot. 
In  casting  lots  the  farm  fell  to  George,  the 
younger  brother,  and  the  mill  to  the  older. 
Ernst  was  well  pleased  with  his  portion  of 
the  estate,  and  George  did  not  murmur  as  he 
glanced  from  the  mill  to  his  rich  cornfields 
and  orchards,  whose  possession  made  him 
one  of  the  wealthiest  dwellers  of  the  valley. 


8  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

The  brothers  now  warmly  clasped  hands, 
pledging  to  each  other  more  than  a  neigh- 
borly feeling.  Ernst  took  possession  of  the 
mill,  and  George  continued  to  occupy  the 
neat  farmhouse,  situated  in  about  the  centre 
of  his  property. 

The  stream  of  water  which,  splashing, 
turned  the  mill-wheels  formed  the  bound- 
ary-line between  their  estates.  The  mill  was 
seated  on  the  left  bank,  the  farm  on  the  right, 
and  a  bridge  crossed  the  stream.  So  close 
together  lay  their  properties  that  if  they 
wished  they  could  visit  each  other  hourly. 

One  would  have  supposed  that  these  broth- 
ers, who  were  so  universally  envied  for  their 
independent  circumstances,  would  lead  the 
most  happy  life  together.  God  had  bestowed 
upon  them  infinitely  more  than  upon  millions 
of  their  fellow-beings.  He  favored  them  with 
good  health,  abundance,  beautiful  and  attractive 
homes — with  enough,  and  more  than  enough, 


THE   TWO    BROTHERS.  9 

for  which  to  be  thankful.  Although  Ernst, 
the  elder,  felt  happy  with  his  lot,  the  same 
could  not  be  said  of  George,  the  younger, 
who  was  restless  and  dissatisfied.  They  dif- 
fered widely  in  disposition  and  in  mode  of 
thinking. 

Ernst  was  justly  esteemed  a  plain,  thought- 
ful, and  at  the  same  a  thoroughly  upright 
and  diligent,  young  man.  Restlessly  indus- 
trious early  and  late,  he  found  no  time  for 
needless  racking  of  the  brain  or  vain  mus- 
ings; as  a  good  economist,  he  watched  his 
interests  closely,  exerting  his  powers  to  the 
utmost,  and  deemed  himself  so  happy  amid 
this  restless  activity  that  he  envied  no  one 
in  all  the  world — not  even  him  who  was, 
perhaps,  far  more  prosperous  or  possessed 
still  greater  riches.  The  mill  supplied  his 
wants,  and  a  good  deal  more,  as  the  poor 
and  needy  in  the  community  well  realized. 
The  noble  young  man  desired  nothing  be- 


IO  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

yond  this.  After  being  actively  engaged 
during  the  day,  he  would  often  in  the  even- 
ing visit  his  revered  friend  Parson  Seebach, 
who  lived  in  Lauerthal,  a  neighboring  vil- 
lage, whose  instructive  as  well  as  attractive 
conversation  he  enjoyed  either  at  his  house 
or  during  a  walk.  Other  good  friends  would 
also  meet  at  the  parsonage,  or  perhaps  occa- 
sionally at  the  mill,  which  afforded  an  excel- 
lent opportunity,  after  the  labors  of  the  day, 
for  a  refreshing  and  acceptable  evening  en- 
tainment. 

On  the  Lord's  day  the  mill-wheels  stood 
still ;  their  busy  rattling  did  not  sound  up 
and  down  the  valley  as  on  week-days.  Ernst, 
as  a  true  Christian,  loved  devotionally  to  spend 
the  day  which  celebrates  Christ's  resurrection 
from  the  dead.  His  dusty  mill- coat  being 
laid  aside,  in  neat  and  becoming  attire  he 
could  be  seen  on  a  Sabbath  morning  wend- 
ing his  way  devoutly  to  the  neighboring 


THE   TWO    BROTHERS.  II 

church.  There  he  met  on  holy  ground  the 
assembly  for  which  his  simple,  pious  heart 
sincerely  longed.  There  he  offered  a  silent 
prayer,  thanking  God  for  his  providential  and 
gracious  gifts  bestowed  on  him  during  the 
week.  Being  thoroughly  instructed  in  the 
divine  truth,  and  having  his  spirit  refreshed 
by  the  dews  of  the  sanctuary,  he  returned  to 
spend  the  remainder  of  the  holy  day  either 
in  earnest  meditation  t>n  God's  revealed  will, 
or  in  reading  a  good  and  instructive  book,  or 
in  wandering  out  into  the  beautiful  valley  of 
his  home,  admiring  the  rich  beauty  which 
crowned  it.  Or  sometimes  he  visited  his 
brother  and  the  neighbors,  if  they  did  not 
prefer  coming  to  him.  The  evening  was 
spent  in  pious  conversation  under  the  state- 
ly linden  before  the  mill. 

Thus  Ernst  passed  his  days  in  the  midst 
of  happiness  and  contentment.  He  found 
full  satisfaction  in  what  he  possessed,  and 


12  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

never  longed,  not  even  for  a  moment,  for  a 
bettering  of  his  circumstances. 

George  was  very  differently  minded.  In 
fact,  no  two-  brothers  could  have  been  more 
opposite  constituted.  While  Ernst  sought 
and  found  his  happiness  in  God,  George 
sought  satisfaction  in  the  whirlpools  of  the 
world,  but,  unlike  his  brother,  without  rind- 
ing it.  Insatiable  and  aspiring,  he  was  dis- 
contented with  his  possessions.  He  had,  it 
is  true,  a  good  maintenance,  but  many  had 
that :  he  thirsted  for  riches,  pomp  and  lord- 
ship. In  his  very  soul  he  envied  the  wealthy 
nobles  and  principalities  whose  proud  and 
stately  castles  loomed  up  before  him  in  the 
distance  from  his  plain  but  inviting  resi- 
dence. 

"Why  am  I  not  just  as  high-born  and 
rich  ?"  he  muttered,  morosely,  as  his  eyes 
rested  on  the  towers  and  pinnacles  and  the 
•crystal  windows  of  the  several  castles. 


THE   TWO    BROTHERS.  1 3 

"What  crime  have  I  committed,  that  I  can- 
not call  lofty  towers,  costly  apartments,  splen- 
did equipages  and  fiery  steeds  mine,  as  well 
as  they,  who  are  only  mortals  and  no  more 
than  I?  Why,  when  they  possess  .hundreds 
of  acres,  must  I  be  contented  with  a  few 
hides  of  land  ?  Why  dwell  in  a  hut,  when 
those  strut  about  in  palaces?  Why  is 
there  for  me  so  little,  and  for  them  so 
much  ?" 

Thus  soliloquized  George.  Such  foolish, 
and  in  his  circumstances  wicked,  ideas  haunt- 
ed him,  while  for  a  lesson  in  contentment  he 
need  but  have  glanced  at  his  brother,  who, 
similarly  situated  and  surrounded,  was  so  en- 
tirely satisfied  and  happy.  But  for  such  quiet 
and  unostentatious  happiness  he  had  neither 
taste  nor  disposition.  He  longed  for  gold, 
for  show  and  for  splendor ;  he  wished  to  be 
admired,  envied,  noticed — not  as  he  was  en- 
vied by  the  humbler  dwellers  of  his  native 


14  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

valley,  but  to  be  envied  by  all  the  world, 
even  by  the  great  and  the  wealthy.  He 
might  have  been  happy,  but  his  insatiable 
spirit  rendered  him  restive  and  wretched.' 
Fie  esteemed  his  inheritance  as  nothing 
compared  with  what  Fate  had  denied  him. 
A  dissatisfied  person  is  not  only  unhappy, 
but  also  irritable,  morose  and  negligent.  To 
this  rule  George  formed  no  exception.  He 
made  no  progress  in  his  domestic  concerns — 
rather  the  reverse,  because  his  mind  was  oc- 
cupied with  other  than  his  rightful  employ- 
ment. Seldom  did  he  put  his  hand  to  the 
plough.  When  the  soil  was  to  be  ordured 
or  the  crops  gathered,  he  depended  on  his 
hired  help,  whom  he  paid  for  their  service, 
and  whose  business,  he  said,  it  was  to  do 
the  work.  He  the  rather  joined  merry  circles, 
squandered  his  means,  sought  joy  and  diver- 
sion everywhere,  and  amid  all  the  passing 
scenes  found  neither  felicity  nor  contentment, 


THE   TWO    BROTHERS.  15 

but  simply  vexation,  regret  and  self-reproach. 
He  was  wretched  and  sighed  for  a  bettering 
of  his  circumstances,  which  at  present  were 
to  him  by  no  means  satisfactory. 

Thus,  one  day,  morose  and  dejected  as 
usual,  in  order  to  pass  time  George  went 
to  the  village,  several  miles  distant  from  his 
residence  and  located  so  near  the  Rhine  that 
the  houses  are  reflected  in  its  crystal  waters. 
Here  he  took  his  position  at  a  landing-place 
where  steamers  usually  lay  to  in  their  going 
and  coming.  He  listlessly  observed  the  stir, 
the  business  and  the  occupations  which  en- 
livened the  shore. 

A  large  steamer  came  down  the  river ;  the 
huge  splurging  wheels- struck  the  foaming  wa- 
ters; black  smoke  whirled  in  thick  clouds 
over  the  vessel ;  and,  suddenly  describing  a 
large  arc,  the  boat  swept  up  to  the  landing. 
The  bell  rang;  passengers  streamed  in  and 
out ;  baggage  and  bales  of  merchandise  were 


1 6  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

lugged  to  and  from  the  vessel.  Again  the 
bell  rang.  The  captain  shouted.  Again 
the  wheels,  until  now  silent,  forcibly  struck 
the  heaving  waters. 

Dreamily  the  eye  of  George  followed  the 
steamer,  which  like  a  huge  bird  moved  off 
on  the  strong  pinions  of  steam. 

"Oh  that  I  could  sail  along  and  see  the 
wide  world !"  sighed  he,  in  half-smothered 
tones. 

"And  why  can't  you  ?"  inquired  a  voice 
by  his  side.  "What  hinders  you?" 

George  looked  up  and  saw  a  party  of  men, 
women  and  children  sitting  by  the  wharf. 
Before  him  stood  a  young  man  with  a  keen, 
open  countenance,  looking  half  boldly,  half 
mockingly,  into  his  face. 

"  Well,"  said  he,  "  what  is  there  to  pre- 
vent you?  You  lack  neither  youth  nor 
health,  and  as  much  money  as  you  may  need 
for  the  journey  you  will  also  be  able  to  se- 


THE    TWO    BROTHERS.  I1/ 

cure;  you  certainly  do  not  look  poverty- 
stricken.  But  undoubtedly  you  are  a  dar- 
ling pet  and  dare  not  let  go  the  apron-strings 
of  your  anxious  mamma." 

"What  do  you  say?"  exclaimed  George, 
angrily  and  with  knitted  brow.  "  I  am  un- 
der no  one's  control  and  call  no  man  mas- 
ter. But  who  are  you  and  these  people?" 

"  Emigrants.  Why,  you  can  see  it,"  re- 
plied the  fellow.  "All  these  are  bound  for 
the  Western  country  of  America,  and  are 
stopping  here  to  meet  friends  and  acquaint- 
ances to-morrow  morning.  But  I  have  some- 
thing better  in  view." 

"And  what?"  asked  George,  inquisitively. 
"  Do  you  not  accompany  them  ?" 

"  No ;  I'd  be  foolish  to  do  so.  I  am  going 
to  California,  the  gold-country,  where  the 
gold-pieces  lie  scattered  like  pebbles  in  a 
stream  and  one  has  but  to  gather  them," 

said  the  young  man. 
2*  B 


1 8  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

George  listened  intently.  He  had,  it  is 
true,  heard  of  California  and  that  vast  treas- 
ures of  gold  could  be  secured  there;  but 
that  he,  or  any  one  else,  could  go  there  to 
seek  the  glittering  prize  had  never  occurred 
to  him. 

"  But,"  said  he,  after  a  moment's  reflec- 
tion, "  since  there  is  so  much  gold  in  that 
country,  and  you  are  going  there,  why  do 
not  all  these  go  with  you?" 

"Bah!  With  wives  and  children?"  ex- 
claimed the  young  stranger.  "  They  would 
fare  badly.  To  go  to  California,  one  must 
be  young  and  robust,  brave  and  resolute, 
vigorous,  and,  above  all,  untrammelled  by 
wife  and  children.  A  family  is  only  an  ob- 
stacle there.  Alone,  young,  brave,  hale  and 
resolute, — that's  the  way  to  win  a  fortune. 
For  this  reason  I  am  going  alone,  on  my 
own  responsibility.  At  home  I  have  noth- 
ing to  lose ;  there,  everything  to  win.  If 


THE   TWO    BROTHERS.  19 

you  have  sufficient  courage,  accompany  me." 
After  this  speech  he  walked  away  and  min- 
gled with  the  other  emigrants,  who  collected 
their  baggage  to  go  into  the  town  to  seek 
lodging  for  the  night. 

George  remained  standing  by  the  landing 
and  musingly  gazed  over  the  railing  into  the 
green,  gently-flowing  waters  of  the  river. 
The  words  of  the  young  fellow  who  had 
addressed  him  still  rang  in  his  ears. 

"  California !"  .  muttered  he — "  California ! 
*  When  young,  courageous,  hale,  resolute, 
Fortune  smiles  upon  one  there/  said  he.  If 
he  was  right !  And  why  should  he  not  be  ? 
I  well  know  that  gold  exists  there  in  great 
masses  :  the  parson  himself  lately  related  the 
fact  to  Ernst  and  read  from  the  newspaper 
of  startling  discoveries  of  gold  in  that  coun- 
try. Even  if  California  be  far  distant  from 
the  Rhine,  I  can  certainly  get  there  as  well 
as  this  one.  Why  should  I  not  be  as  sue- 


2O  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

cessful  as  he?  Am  I  not  young,  robust, 
strong  and  brave?  Have  I  not  already  in 
vain  courted  success?  Yes,  then,  to  Cali- 
fornia I  mean  to  go  to  ascertain  whether 
prosperity  will  not  smile  on  me  there." 

George  pondered  yet  a  good  while  on  the 
rich  gold-country,  and  in  golden  dreams  pic- 
tured to  himself  what  he  would  do  and  ac- 
complish when,  after  years,  he  would  return 
as  an  exceedingly  rich  man,  rolling  in  wealth 
and  scattering  it  with  a  liberal  hand,  without 
even  knowing  any  further  want  of  it.  How 
he  could  then  build,  close  to  the  Rhine,  on 
an  elevation,  a  splendid  castle  whose  proud 
pinnacles  would  be  reflected  in  the  waters, 
and  buy  large  tracts  and  live  like  the  first 
nobleman  in  the  land ! 

Finally,  his  brow  became  feverish  and  his 
head  dizzy  from  dreaming,  planning  and  the 
air-castles  which  he  reared  in  the  blue  fir- 
mament of  his  imagination.  Until  evening  he 


THE   TWO   BROTHERS.  21 

stood  on  the  landing,  and  only  after  a  cool 
wind  blew  from  the  Rhine  and  the  frosty 
night-air  chilled  him  did  he  turn  his  steps 
slowly  away — not  to  go  to  his  home,  how- 
ever, but  to  go  into  the  village  to  seek  the 
headquarters  of  the  emigrants,  in  order  again 
to  meet  the  young  stranger.  Having  found, 
him,  he  ordered  for  him  a  glass  of  wine,  and 
still  another,  listening  all  the  while  intently  to 
every  golden  word  which  fell  from  his  lips. 
Of  course  there  was  little  truth  in  what 
he  so  readily  communicated;  still,  it  served 
to  stimulate  the  longing  of  George  for  the 
gold-country,  and  finally,  when  he  separated 
from  his  newly-made  friend,  after  midnight, 
his  resolution  was  formed.  He  purposed  dis- 
posing of  his  effects  and  at  once  sailing  to 
the  New  World,  where  his  fond  anticipations 
would  certainly  be  realized  and  with  little 
effort.  Returning  home,  he  threw  himself 
on  his  bed  to  sleep,  but  his  usually  sweet 


22  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

and  undisturbed  slumber  was  during  this 
night  restless  as  never  before.  He  dreamed 
of  nothing  but  of  lofty  mountains  of  gold, 
which  glowed  in  the  rays  of  the  sun  like 
huge  fires,  and  of  immense  masses  of  shin- 
ing ore  which  could  be  drawn  out  like 
^vater  from  a  well. 

Early  in  the  morning  he  went  to  see  his 
brother,  to  communicate  to  him  the  resolu- 
tion he  had  formed.  Night  had  neither 
changed  his  mind  nor  weakened  his  adven- 
turous and  hazardous  determination.  His 
eyes  were  blinded,  his  reason  bewildered,  by 
the  burning  thirst  for  gold  which  had  taken 
possession  of  his  entire  being. 


CHAPTER   II. 

THE    EMIGRANT. 

A5OUT    an   hour   after   sunrise    George 
left   his    commodious,  if  not  magnif- 
icent, dwelling,  whose  roof  had  already  for 
a  century  sheltered  his  fathers. 

The  dewdrops  still  hung  on  the  slender 
blades  of  grass,  or  glittered  in  the  cups  of 
the  solitary  meadow-flowers,  or  dropped  like 
fluid  diamonds  from  the  refreshed  leaves  of 
the  trees.  Over  the  mountains  hung  a  clear, 
light  mist,  which  in  the  bright  sunlight  daz- 
zled the  eye  with  its  silvery  brightness. 
From  the  distance  sounded  the  rattling  of 
the  mill.  The  birds  sang  their  merry  songs 
in  the  branches.  It  was  a  most  blissful,  re- 
freshing and  lovely  morning. 

23 


24  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

Under  other  circumstances,  George  would 
have  highly  enjoyed  such  a  beautiful,  festive 
hour,  when  the  breath  of  the  Almighty  seems 
to  permeate  and  enliven  all  nature ;  to-day 
he  had  no  relish  for  his  pleasant  surroundings. 
With  downcast  look  he  rashly  hastened  across 
the  bridge  to  the  mill,  and  presently  stood 
'before  his  brother,  who  viewed  him  with 
surprise. 

"  George,"  he  exclaimed,  "  what  has  be- 
fallen you?  Why,  you  are  laboring  under 
a  hallucination  this  morning." 

"  No  wonder,  Ernst,"  replied  he :  "  I  have 
come  to  a  new  determination." 

"  God  grant  it  may  be  a  good  one !"  said 
Ernst,  in  the  sincerity  of  his  heart.  "  But 
what  is  this  new  determination  ?" 

"  Brother,  I  propose  emigrating  to  Cali- 
fornia— to  the  gold-country." 

"And  what  do  you  expect  to  do  there, 
George  ?"  inquired  Ernst,  astounded. 


THE   EMIGRANT.  25 

"What  do  I  expect  to  do  there?  Why, 
seek  gold,  riches,  and  acquire  immense  treas- 
ures. What  else  ?" 

"  Do  you  not  suppose,  George,  that  you 
are  very  foolish  ?"  said  Ernst,  laughingly ; 
for  he  could  not  believe  that  his  brother  had 
really  come  to  a  determination  which  to  him 
seemed  utterly  preposterous.  "  Stay  at  home 
and  support  yourself  honestly;  do  not  in- 
dulge adventurous  schemes.  You  have  to 
struggle  against  neither  want  nor  care.  Your 
fertile  fields  and  luxuriant  meadows  are  your 
gold-mines,  and  they  are  sufficiently  product- 
ive to  satisfy  your  rational  needs.  Leave  me, 
George  ?  You  are  only  jesting." 

"  No,  no,  brother,  I  am  in  earnest — in  real 
earnest,"  replied  George.  "  I  am  tired  of  this 
miserably  monotonous  life ;  I  will  strike  out 
into  the  wide  world.  I  am  zealous,  young, 
vigorous  and  resolute ;  upon  such  qualities 
Fortune  smiles." 

3 


26  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

" '  Fortune  ' !"  repeated  Ernst,  with  surprise. 
"  What  fortune  do  you  desire  other  than 
what  Heaven  has  already  granted  you  ?  Are 
you  not  favored  ?  What  more  can  you  wish  ? 
You  have  a  respectable  maintenance,  a  home 
besides,  a  brother  who  loves  you.  George, 
I  pray  you,  what  more  and  better  can  you 
find  out  in  the  world,  where  you  are  a 
stranger  and  a  homeless  wanderer?  Let 
others  whom  Providence  has  not  so  highly 
favored  go  abroad :  I  find  no  fault  with  such ; 
but,  as  for  you,  it  were  the  height  of  folly  to 
reject  secured  present  good  for  an  uncertain — 
perhaps  a  gloomy  and  sorrowful — future.  To 
barter  a  competency  for  a  delusive  hope — 
how  unwise  this  were !" 

"  But  my  maintenance  does  not  suffice," 
replied  George,  obstinately.  "  Here  I  wear- 
ily gather  the  ears  of  corn,  while  there  I  will 
scrape  together  heaps  of  solid  gold.  Thou- 
sands go  to  California — thousands,  with  lit- 


THE   EMIGRANT.  2/ 

tie  effort,  there  collect  immense  treasure. 
Why  shall  I  fold  my  arms  and  quietly  look 
on,  when  I  have  but  to  reach  out  my  hand 
to  obtain  riches  as  well  as  they  ?  No,  no ! 
My  mode  of  life  here  is  a  simple  excuse  for 
living :  I  will  go." 

When  Ernst  saw  that  his  brother  was  firm 
in  his  determination,  he  was  first  sorrowful, 
then  angry.  He  warned,  he  entreated,  he  re- 
monstrated; but  George  continued  unmoved 
in  his  intentions. 

"Well,  if  you  must  go,  we  cannot  do 
otherwise  than  allow  you  to  follow  your 
inclinations,"  said  the  brave  fellow,  finally, 
with  painful  indignation.  "  But  think  of  my 
warnings.  Regret  will  overtake  you,  with  all 
its  pain  and  suffering,  before  you  are  aware 
of  it,  and  when  it  may  be  for  ever  too  late 
to  retrace  your  steps." 

"  Very  well,"  replied  George,  irritated ; 
"we  shall  see  whether  you  will  eventually 


28  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

envy  me,  or  I  you.  I  will  at  once  make  the 
preliminary  arrangements  to  dispose  of  my 
property." 

"  George,  for  goodness*  sake,  reflect  be- 
fore you  take  this  step,"  warned  Ernst,  in 
alarm.  "  Do  not  sell  the  house — the  dear 
old  homestead  where  together  we  spent  the 
happy  days  of  our  childhood.  You  will  in 
time  regret  it — with  bitterness  regret  it.  Re- 
frain from  this  course  of  procedure." 

"  I  will  not,"  replied  George,  insolently. 
"  What  does  the  miserable  hut  concern  me, 
when  I  may  hereafter  rear  a  castle  ?"  With- 
out further  listening  to  Ernst  he  walked  away. 

George  was  displeased  with  his  brother, 
whom  he  had  expected  agreeably  to  sur- 
prise with  his  proposed  undertaking,  and 
who  he  had  secretly  hoped  might  even  ac- 
company him  and  with  him  seek  a  fortune 
in  the  New  World.  In  this  he  was  now  dis- 
appointed. The  rational  remonstrances  of 


THE    EMIGRANT.  29 

his  brother  only  served  to  strengthen  his 
adventurous  purpose.  In  his  present  frame 
of  mind  what  cared  he  for  home,  friends  or 
a  devoted  brother's  love  ?  Gold,  wealth, 
untold  treasure, — this  it  was  for  which  he 
yearned,  and  which  he  hoped  easily  to  ob- 
tain. 

Without  further  consideration,  George  took 
the  necessary  steps  toward  disposing  of  his 
effects.  He  hastened  on  matters  generally. 
The  very  ground  of  his  home  seemed  to  burn 
beneath  his  feet.  A  feverish  longing  urged 
him  to  hasten  to  the  distant  gold-country, 
as  though  he  feared,  coming  too  late,  others 
might  carry  away  the  treasure  designed  for 
him.  Thirst  for  gold  so  completely  possessed 
him  that  he  was  no  longer  capable  of  calm 
and  cool  reflection. 

Meanwhile,  Ernst  quietly  meditated  on  the 
course  his  brother  was  pursuing;  and  the 
longer  he  dwelt  on  it,  the  more  anxious  he 

3* 


3O  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

became  as  to  the  result  of  the  hazardous 
project.  He  well  saw  that  his  brother  no 
longer  heeded  his  remonstrances  or  pray- 
ers, but  his  worthy  friend  Herr  Parson  See- 
bach  might  probably  yet  to  some  purpose 
influence  the  unhappy  design  of  George. 
To  him  he  hastened,  and  laid  the  whole 
matter  before  him. 

The  parson  was  no  less  alarmed  than 
Ernst. 

"  I  must  at  once  see  him,"  said  he.  "  Be 
composed,  my  friend;  George  will  yet  re- 
flect and  return  to  reason.  To  leave,  to 
throw  away  a  sure  fortune  in  order  to  chase 
phantom  hopes,  would  be  rushing  into  the 
arms  of  destruction  with  deliberation.  Be 
composed,  friend ;  George  is  not  so  foolish 
as  not  to  be  approached  by  reason." 

The  kind  parson  delayed  not  a  moment  to 
see  George,  but  found  him  just  as  obstinate  as 
his  brother  had  found  him  in  the  morning. 


THE   EMIGRANT.  3! 

4  What  do  you  wish  ?"  inquired  he.  "  I 
mean  to  seek  my  fortune,  and  no  one  shall 
hinder  me." 

"  No  one  truly  will  hinder  you  from  seek- 
ing your  true  fortune,"  answered  the  parson ; 
"but  do  you  really  think,  George,  that  fortune 
consists  of  nothing  but  gold  ?  Fortune — 
true  fortune — exists  only  with  moderation 
and  self-denial.  Be  contented,  and  you  are 
fortunate." 

"  But  I  am  discontented,"  replied  George. 
"  My  desires  reach  beyond  these  narrow  con- 
fines, which  shut  from  me  all  enjoyment.  I 
long  to  be  rich — as  rich  as  they  who  now 
look  haughtily  down  upon  me." 

"And  are  you  not  richer  than  millions  of 
your  fellow- beings,  who  by  hard  labor  must 
wrestle  for  their  daily  bread  ?  George,  you 
mock  God,  who  has  blessed  you  above  thou- 
sands and  given  you  everything  that  beauti- 
fies and  adorns  life.  You  should  thank  the 


32  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

Lord  on  bended  knee  for  the  fulness  of  bless- 
ing which  his  grace  has  showered  on  you. 
You  covet  riches :  are  you  not  rich  through 
the  true  love  of  your  brother  and  the  kind- 
ness of  your  neighbors  ?  for  love  is  so  ines- 
timable that  all  the  gold  of  the  earth  can 
neither  be  substituted  for  it  nor  purchase 
it,  and  you  should  at  least  think  twice  before 
you  inconsiderately  spurn  such  a  priceless 
treasure.  You  envy  the  rich  and  the  great, 
but  why  not  rather  look  below  than  above 
you  ?  You  will  find  few  in  better  circum- 
stances than  you,  while  you  can  count  the 
poorer  by  hundreds  and  thousands.  Look 
on  them.  See  how  they  eat  their  bread  in 
the  sweat  of  their  face,  how  with  depriva- 
tions of  every  kind,  with  want,  with  grief, 
with  sickness,  with  affliction,  they  are  called 
to  struggle ;  and  then,  if  you  dare,  complain 
and  find  fault  with  your  condition,  which  is 
so  superior  to  hosts  of  others.  You  are  for- 


THE   EMIGRANT.  33 

tunate  ;  only  realize  it.  You  have  every  rea- 
son to  be  contented ;  therefore  be  contented, 
and  do  not  by  your  murmuring  and  disaffec- 
tion offend  when  you  should  honor  and  praise 
your  God  with  hymns  of  thanksgiving." 

"All  very  good,"  replied  George,  in  haughty 
tones.  "  Every  one  seeks  his  fortune  after 
his  own  fashion,  and  mine  is  simply  to  go 
to  California." 

"  Then  go,  and  God  grant  you  may  never 
repent  it !"  said  the  parson.  "  I  well  see, 
George,  you  belong  to  that  class  which  are 
not  to  be  made  wise  by  exhortation,  but  by 
experience.  But,  believe  me,  experience  will 
not  be  waited  on." 

That  the  worthy  parson  and  Ernst  repeat- 
ed their  entreaties  and  remonstrances  from 
time  to  time  availed  nothing.  George's  mind 
was  so  bent  on  California  and  its  mineral 
wealth  that  his  reason  was  almost  dethroned, 
and  he  never  for  a  moment  thought  of  alter- 


34  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

•* 

ing  his  purpose.  He  believed,  once  for  all, 
that  there  alone  success  awaited  him.  All 
warnings  and  exhortations  to  reflect  on  his 
wild  scheme  he  treated  with  utter  contempt. 
When  the  parson  related  to  him,  or  read  from 
books,  how  many  persons,  by  their  intense 
longing  for  gold,  had'  made  shipwreck  and 
perished  miserably  in  California,  or  had  re- 
turned to  their  homes  poor  and  ragged,  he 
remarked  that  he  purposed  being  wiser  than 
they,  and  to  economize.  To  cap  the  climax, 
he  read  in  a  newspaper  that  a  large  vessel 
freighted  with  gold  had  landed  in  England. 
He  could  now  be  restrained  no  longer.  Over 
head  and  ears  he  plunged  into  his  prepara- 
tions for  the  voyage  to  the  New  World,  and 
his  friends  were  obliged  to  let  -him  have  his 
own  way.  Did  they  offer  opposition,  he 
became  furious  and  turned  away  from  each 
one — even  from  the  parson^— and  in  addition 
offered  the  grossest  insults. 


THE   EMIGRANT.  35 

"  We  must  let  him  do  as  he  likes,  parson," 
softly  remarked  thoughtful  Ernst.  "  Still,  it 
pains  me  to  think  of  him  rushing  thus  blind- 
ly to  ruin.  I  have  a  presentiment  that  he  will 
some  time  return  home,  and  for  this  event  I 
desire  to  provide.  God  has  rewarded  my  in- 
dustry, and  I  have  saved  a  handsome  sum 
of  money.  What  more  is  needed  I  presume 
can  be  secured." 

"  What  is  needed,  dear  friend  ?"  earnestly 
inquired  the  parson. 

"  Why,  simply  funds  to  purchase  the  prop- 
erty of  my  brother,"  replied  Ernst.  "You 
see,  dear  parson,  I  cannot  bear  the  thought 
that  the  much-cherished  old  home — the  dear 
old  house  under  whose  moss-covered  roof  I 
have  spent  so  many  happy  hours,  in  which 
I  was  born,  and  in  which  my  sainted  father 
drew  his  last  breath — should  pass  into  the 
hands  of  a  stranger.  I  contemplate  pur- 
chasing his  entire  property — not  "for  myself, 


36  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

but  for  my  poor  infatuated  brother  George, 
who  in  the  end  will  thank  me  for  retaining 
for  him  a  place  at  the  homestead.  But  let 
him  know  nothing  of  this,  parson.  If  he 
knew  that  I  intended  purchasing  his  pos- 
sessions, he  might  perhaps  sell  under  value ; 
and  this  I  could  not  endure,  as  he  will  likely 
need  his  money  over  in  the  rich  gold-region. 
And  when  he  returns,  parson,  how  rejoiced 
he  will  be  again  to  dwell  under  the  dear 
old  roof!" 

With  kindly  emotion  the  parson  looked 
into  the  moist  eye  of  the  noble  Ernst. 

"  God  bless  you,  my  son !"  said  he,  feel- 
ingly. "  However  well  George  may  succeed 
beyond  the  sea,  and  though  he  seize  every 
treasure  of  the  gold-country,  a  heart  like 
yours  he  will  not  again  find  in  all  the  world ; 
and  I  trust  he  will  eventually  discover  that 
such  a  heart  has  more  real  value  than  the 
gold  of  the  whole  earth." 


THE   EMIGRANT.  37 

"  Bah !"  replied  Ernst,  mildly ;  "  it  is  only 
the  heart  of  a  true  brother,  which  fulfils  its 
duty." 

The  parson  and  Ernst  so  shrewdly  set  to 
work  that  in  the  disposition  of  his  affairs 
George  did  not  observe  that  his  possessions 
passed  into  the  hands  of  his  brother.  He 
believed  a  stranger  anxious  to  settle  in  the 
neighborhood  had  purchased  his  property, 
but  knew  not  that  he  was  a  distant  relative  of 
the  parson,  who  closed  the  purchase  for  him- 
self as  a  mere  matter  of  form. 

Besides,  for  the  present,  George  cared  lit- 
tle about  the  occupancy  of  his  paternal  abode 
and  the  cultivation  of  the  fields  which  had 
maintained  him  and  his  ancestry  for  so  many 
years.  He  appropriated  the  proceeds  of  the 
sale  of  his  goods  to  cover  the  expenditures 
on  the  long  journey.  Early  one  morning, 
when  his  brother  Ernst  looked  for  him  to 
come  to  take  his  final  leave,  he  was  already 

4 


38  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

off  and  away  beyond  the  mountains,  cheerily 
sailing  down  the  Rhine  in  a  steamer.  He 
had  simply  left  a  note. 

"Farewell,  brother,"  he  wrote.  "Pardon 
me  for  leaving  without  embracing  you  a  last 
time:  I  dreaded  the  pain  of  separation.  I 
greet  you  a  thousand  times,  and  in  the  far- 
away land  beyond  the  sea  I  will  cherish  you 
with  the  same  warm  feeling  of  affection  which 
I  entertained  for  you  at  home.  I  do  not  know 
that  I  act  wisely  in  this  that  I  now  separate 
from  you  and  my  native  land,  but  this  I  know 
— that  I  had  no  longer  any  rest  at  home.  I 
seek  my  fortune,  and  I  hope,  brother,  I  will 
find  it.  The  Lord  be  with  you  and  all  the 
friends  always!  Farewell." 

"  Farewell,  poor  brother,  and  God  be  with 
you  also !"  sighed  Ernst ;  and  a  hot  tear  fell 
on  the  note  as  he  folded  it  with  trembling 
hands.  "  If  you  find  what  you  seek,  no  one 
will  rejoice  more  than  I." 


THE   EMIGRANT.  39 

He  locked  up  the  note  in  a  desk  and  a  lov- 
ing remembrance  of  his  brother  in  his  heart. 
But  he  often  thought  of  the  absent  one  as 
in  the  evening  he  sat  alone  in  his  yard  under 
the  linden  tree,  and  many  a  blessing  followed 
the  adventurer  on  his  dark,  distant  and  dan- 
gerous path,  which  more  likely  led  to  misery 
than  to  joy. 


CHAPTER  III. 

BE   CAREFUL    WHOM   YOU  TRUST. 


EORGE,  meanwhile,  full  of  bright  anti- 
cipations,  which  were  increasing  rather 
than  decreasing,  hopefully  prosecuted  his 
journey.  This  he  had  entered  upon  indis- 
creetly and  heedlessly.  He  did  not  regret 
his  course  of  action  ;  he  much  more  rejoiced 
that  he  had  so  persistently  withstood  all  op- 
position, all  entreaties,  all  remonstrances  of 
his  brother  and  Herr  Parson.  For  this 
seemed  to  him  a  sure  indication  of  his  res- 
oluteness, which,  as  the  young  fellow  at  the 
landing  had  said,  was  especially  requisite  to 
obtain  the  beckoning  fortune  in  the  distant 
land. 

His  restless  spirit  now   spurred   him    on- 

40 


BE   CAREFUL   WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  4! 

ward  from  place  to  place,  from  city  to  city, 
and  never  sought  a  traveller,  long  among 
strangers,  more  eagerly  his  home  from  which 
he  had  been  long  painfully  absent  than  George 
to  escape  his  in  order  to  seek  a  new  land  and 
an  unknown  region  concerning  which  his 
lively  imagination  had  formed  most  won- 
derful and  altogether  fanciful  representa- 
tions. 

In  his  view,  on  arriving  at  California  he 
had  nothing  further  to  do  than  daily  visit 
some  remote,  densely-tangled  wood  and  there 
fill  his  pockets  with  solid  pieces  of  gold, 
which  must  everywhere  lie  thick  on  the 
ground.  At  furthest,  thought  he,  it  might 
be  necessary  to  penetrate  farther  inland,  as 
the  coast-land  and  its  immediate  surround- 
ings might  perhaps  already  be  pretty  well 
stripped.  But  what  did  it  matter  to  him  if 
he  had  to  go  eighty  or  a  hundred  miles  into 
the  interior,  after  having  travelled  so  many 


42  .    THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

hundred  miles  to  reach  the  boasted  glorious 
gold-country  ?  This  desire  for  gold  had  so 
permeated  his  being  that  every  night  in  his 
dreams  there  appeared  before,  him  the  de- 
sired gold-beds  as  they  extended  their  yel- 
low lustre  for  miles. 

Thus  he  finally  arrived  at  Ostend,  where 
he  expected  to  set  sail  for  England,  and 
from  thence  take  passage  for  California. 
With  radiant  eye  he  here  for  the  first  time 
beheld  the  majestic  aspect  of  the  sea,  and 
stared  with  wonder  and  surprise  at  the  for- 
est of  masts,  with  their  pendants  and  tackles, 
which  stretched  out  promiscuously  before 
him  in  the  port.  Here  he  stood  amid  his 
packs,  which  lay  about  in  great  disorder, 
looking  about  him  bewildered,  until  it  oc- 
curred to  him  that  he  must -bestir  himself 
and  look  for  a  vessel  in  which  to  sail  to 
England. 

"This  will   be  difficult,"  muttered   he,  in 


BE   CAREFUL  WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  43 

half-audible  tones.  "  How  can  one  possibly, 
among  this  multitude  of  conveyances,  select 
just  the  right  one?" 

"  If  this  is  all,  sir,  that  you  wish,  I  may 
be  of  service  to  you,"  said  a  well-clad  but 
greasy-looking  young  fellow  who  for  several 
minutes  had  watched  George  with  searching 
glances.  "  Whither  are  you  going  ?" 

George  turned  about  and  witnessed  a 
friendly  face  smiling  with  well-wishes  and 
assurances  of  friendship. 

"I?"  replied  he.  "To  England,  and 
thence  to  California." 

"  Not  possible  ?"  exclaimed  the  stranger, 
with  well-feigned  surprise.  "  There's  where 
I  am  going ;  and  if  it  is  agreeable  to  you 
we  can  make  the  voyage  together." 

"So  you  are  also  going  to  California?" 
remarked  George.  "And  I  presume  you  too 
wish  to  try  your  luck  there  as  well  as  I?" 

"That  is  my  least  concern.     My  fortune 


44  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

is  already  made.  I  was  there,  and  discov- 
ered an  enormously  rich  gold-mine,  which 
is  worth  millions  of  dollars,  and  from  which, 
on  my  arrival,  I  mean  to  extract  the  treas- 
ure." 

"  You !".  exclaimed  George,  opening  his 
eyes  wide  with  amazement.  "  But  why  did 
you  not  at  once  bring  the  gold  with  you 
when  you  found  it?" 

"That  does  not  go  as  fast  as  you  think, 
my  friend,"  replied  the  fellow.  "  I  was 
alone,  without  conveyance,  without  help,  far 
inland.  In  order  to  carry  away  the  treas- 
ure, I  was  forced  to  return  to  Europe  and 
secure  what  was  needed  for  that  purpose. 
This  is  done.  My  packages  are  already  on 
the  ship,  and  on  my  return  to  California  I 
only  need  buy  horse  and  wagon  to  convey 
my  riches  to  San  Francisco." 

George  listened  with  marked  attention. 
What  masses  of  gold  this  person  must  have 


BE   CAREFUL   WHOM    YOU   TRUST.  45 

discovered,  to  need  horse  and  wagon  to 
carry  it  away !  His  head  grew  dizzy  at  the 
thought  of  these  untold  riches,  and  the 
blood  rushed  to  his  throbbing  heart.  It 
was  indeed  true:  there  was  such  wealth  in 
California.  His  wildest  dreams  were  even 
surpassed  by  the  reality. 

"  Wonderful !"  he  finally  burst  out.  "  Tell 
me,  are  there  more  such  rich  mines  there." 

"  Plenty,  when  one  knows  how  to  find 
them/'  answered  the  stranger.  "  I,  at  least, 
know  of  more  than  one  bed  which  contains 
gold-dust  to  the  value  of  millions.  But 
what  matters  it  to  me?  I  have  enough, 
and  more  than  enough,  with  the  one  mine." 

"  Oh !"  burst  out  George,  his  face  flush- 
ing with  joy.  "  Say,  dear  sir,  if  you  do  not 
care  for  those  beds  yourself,  perhaps  you 
would  not  mind  giving  another  a  lift — me, 
for  instance  ?" 

"  Why  not  ?"  responded  he.    "  I  am  pleased 


46  THE   GOLD-SEEKER, 

with  you.  We  will  make  the  journey  togeth- 
er ;  and  if  we  remain  good  friends,  I  see  noth- 
ing to  hinder  my  being  of  assistance  to  you. 
Meanwhile,  as  you  see,  such-like  things  are 
not  to  be  publicly  discussed.  Accompany 
me  to  a  hotel  where  there  is  good  wine,  and 
we  will  talk  more  about  this  matter.  You  have 
plenty  of  time :  the  steamer  to  Portsmouth 
does  not  sail  till  to-morrow  noon.  Until 
then  we  can  converse  much  with  each  other." 

"  Yes,  yes  !"  said  George,  willingly ;  "  but 
my  packs :  I  cannot  leave  them  here  ex- 
posed." 

"  Dear  me !  this  can  be  arranged.  There 
are  plenty  of  porters  around  here,"  replied 
the  stranger. — "  Halloa !  this  way  with  your 
cart.  Load  this  baggage  and  convey  it  to 
the  Golden  Star,  yonder.  Hurry  !  The  gen- 
tleman is  waiting." 

"  Soon  done,"  said  the  porter,  and  imme- 
diately went  to  work. 


BE   CAREFUL   WHOM    YOU   TRUST.  4/ 

The  packs  were  loaded,  George  assisting, 
and  ten  minutes  later  they  were  safely  stowed 
away  in  a  room  of  the  hotel. 

As  George  was  about  to  pay  the  man  the 
stranger  quickly  interfered,  creating  a  fear- 
ful row  when  he  heard  that  the  porter 
charged  a  few  farthings  too  much. 

"For  shame!"  cried  he.  "This  trash 
would  take  advantage  of  everybody,  espe- 
cially of  a  stranger.  But,  as  luck  would 
have  it,  I  am  here. — Here,  sir,"  he  contin- 
ued, snatching  the  purse  from  the  hand  of 
George,  who  was  partly  bewildered  and  part- 
ly delighted;  "here  is  your  money.  And 
now  begone !  We  do  not  suffer  ourselves 
to  be  imposed  on." 

The  porter  left,  muttering  imprecations, 
and  the  man  who  had  interfered  returned 
the  purse  to  George,  but  only  after  having 
purloined  from  it  a  gold-piece  with  most 
remarkable  dexterity.  George  did  not  no- 


48  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

tice  that  the  rogue  had  robbed  him,  but 
thanked  him  very  kindly  for  the  interest  he 
manifested  in  him. 

"Do  not  spend  your  breath  on  this,"  re- 
sponded he,  with  hypocritical  mien.  "  It  is 
only  a  duty  we  owe  our  neighbor,  and  I  am 
always  stung  to  the  quick  when  I  witness 
such  shameless  conduct.  Besides,  my  friend, 
as  I  remarked,  you  please  me,  and  we  will  be 
together  so  long  it  is  but  natural  that  I  should 
bring  my  experience  to  your  aid." 

Deeply  moved  by  his  apparent  unselfish- 
ness, George  followed  the  youth  into  the 
guest-chamber  and  ordered  a  flask  of  wine 
and  two  mugs. 

But  the  stranger  promptly  stated  that  he 
would  not  tolerate  this. 

"No,  no,"  said  he;  "this  is  my  affair.  I 
persuaded  you  to  accompany  me  to  this 
place ;  therefore  it  is  in  order  that  I  should 
foot  the  bill. — Waiter,  this  way."  IndifTer- 


BE  CAREFUL  WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  49 

ently  he  threw  the  stolen  gold-piece  on  the 
table.  "  Bring  wine — the  best,  of  course — 
and  give  me  the  change." 

It  was  done  as  ordered,  and  George  com- 
posedly enjoyed  the  kindness  of  his  new  ac- 
quaintance, without  entertaining  even  in  the 
remotest  degree  any  suspicion  that  this  per- 
son might  make  a  tool  of  him  or  approach 
him  with  some  deceitful  plan. 

Excited  by  the  recital  of  enormous  gold- 
mines, of  which  his  new  friend  claimed  to 
have  knowledge,  he  was  struck  as  with  blind- 
ness, and  eagerly  awaited  the  moment  when 
he  should  learn  more  of  the  riches  of  Cali- 
fornia. Inasmuch  as  the  man  became  reti- 
cent, as  it  seemed,  and  did  not  choose  to 
speak  freely  on  the  subject,  our  George  nat- 
urally became  more  eager  to  learn  more  of 
gold-discoveries.  Again  he  touched  on  the 
mines  and  beds,  but  his  companion  avoid- 
ed the  subject  in  various  ways  and  under 


5<D  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

various  pretexts  until  George  had  drunk 
more  than  a  flask  of  wine,  and  the  room,  as 
the  night  advanced,  was  gradually  emptied 
of  guests.  The  eyes  of  George  glowed ; 
his  cheeks  were  feverishly  hot,  and  his 
hands  trembled.  He  had  evidently  drunk 
too  much  and  was  no  longer  entirely  him- 
self. 

"But  now,  sir,"  said  he  as  the  last  late 
guest  disappeared,  "  you  must  again  tell  me 
something  of  the  gold-country.  Is  it  really 
true  that  you  have  knowledge  of  more  than 
one  mine?" 

His  acquaintance  looked  carefully  around 
the  room  to  make  sure  that  he  was  alone 
with  George,  and  then  in  a  familiar  way 
drew  nearer  him. 

"  How  thoughtless  of  you,"  whispered  he 
— "how  terribly  thoughtless — that  you  be- 
gin to  talk  about  these  things  in  the  pres- 
ence of  strangers !  Do  you  not  suppose 


BE   CAREFUL   WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  51 

there  were  enough  ears  to  catch  up  every 
word  of  mine  in  order  to  avail  themselves 
of  my  thorough  knowledge  of  the  gold-beds 
of  California  ?  In  fact,  dear  sir,  if  we  are 
to  remain  good  friends  you  must  be  more 
prudent." 

George  viewed  him  with  alarm. 

"  Pardon  me,"  said  he ;  "  you  are  right. 
I  did  not  think  of  this." 

"But  you  must  be  more  thoughtful,"  re- 
plied the  young  fellow.  "So  soon  as  it  is 
here  intimated  what  knowledge  I  possess 
of  the  riches  of  California,  I  am  ruined,  or 
at  least  a  part  of  my  wearily-sought  treas- 
ure is  gone;  for,  naturally,  I  would  be  fol- 
lowed without  being  lost  sight  of  for  a  mo- 
ment, and  every  movement  of  mine  would 
be  noticed,  and  when  in  the  midst  of  the 
labor  of  collecting  the  treasure  a  dozen  and 
more,  uninvited,  would  appear  to  take  their 
share  from  the  richly-laden  table.  But  I 


$2  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

have  not  the  least  desire  to  share  with  any 
stranger." 

"Not  even  with  me?"  exclaimed  George, 
expressing  alarm.  "  No ;  so  severely  you 
must  not  resent  my  thoughtlessness.  You 
indeed  promised  me — " 

"  What  I  promise  I  will  also  endeavor  to 
fulfil,"  replied  his  acquaintance,  proudly. 
"  However,  you  will  understand  a  secret  of 
this  kind  we  do  not  acquaint  any  one  with 
without  some  security  that  it  will  be  sacred- 
ly kept :  you  are,  by  no  means  any  longer  a 
stranger  to  me,  and,  what  is  more,  you  please 
me.  I  feel  a  certain  confidence  in  you — so 
much  so  that  I  would  cheerfully  divide  with 
you  my  own  large  mine  if  I  knew  to  a  cer- 
tainty that  you  would  not  betray  me." 

"  Oh,  sir,  on  my  honor,"  exclaimed  George, 
"  I  will  be  silent  as  the  grave." 

"A  good  friend  of  mine,  to  whom  I  once 
committed  a  similar  secret,  gave  me  the  same 


BE   CAREFUL  WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  53 

assurance,  and  in  the  end  he  abused  the  trust 
I  reposed  in  him.  Yes,  he  betrayed  me — 
not  designedly,  but  inconsiderately.  But 
the  result  was  the  same :  when  I  arrived  at 
the  spot  the  treasure  was  rifled  and  I  was 
left  with  a  blank.  I  might  now  be  a  mil- 
lionaire had  my  friend  not  taken  the  advan- 
tage of  me,  and  for  that  reason  I  am  resolved 
to  trust  no  one  hereafter  without  having  se- 
curity in  hand  for  secrecy." 

"  Really,  after  having  had  such  painful  ex- 
periences, you  cannot  be  blamed  for  asking 
it,"  replied  George,  completely  deluded  by 
the  plausible  remarks  of  the  rogue.  "  But 
what  security  do  you  wish  ?  I  am  willing 
to  give  you  any  in  my  power." 

"  That's  the  way  to  talk,"  said  the  fellow 
"  Tell  me  how  much  money  you  carry  about 
you  ?" 

"  '  How  much  money '  ?"  repeated  George, 
with  some  degree  of  hesitation. 

5* 


54  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

"Yes;  how  much?  Don't  you  compre- 
hend me?" 

"Well,  about  ten  thousand  guilders,"  re- 
plied George,  again  hesitating  considerably. 
"What  of  it?" 

"  Nothing  in  particular.  It  is  satisfactory," 
said  the  youth,  shutting  his  eyes  to  conceal 
the  bright  joy  with  which  they  sparkled. 
"  Listen,  my  friend :  I  desire  not  a  copper 
of  your  money — not  a  copper,  for  you  well 
see  that  a  man  like  me,  who  has  tons  of  gold 
awaiting  him  in  California,  makes  precious 
little  or  no  account  of  your  few  thousand 
wretched  guilders — you  understand  ?  Not 
so." 

"  Yes,  yes !  I  believe  it,"  replied  George, 
evidently  relieved  because  the  fellow  made 
no  attack  on  his  purse. 

"  Very  well.  You  will  then  also  understand 
me  when  I  tell  you  that  you  must  place  in 
my  keeping  a  part — only  a  small  part — of 


BE   CAREFUL  WHOM   YOU   TRUST,  55 

your  money — say  two  thousand  guilders," 
continued  he.  "By  no  means  pay;  the 
Lord  deliver  me !  I  do  not  need  your 
money — no,  only  as  pledge,  as  security  in 
possession,  till  we  reach  the  shores  of  Cal- 
ifornia. I  will,  of  course,  give  you  a  receipt 
for  the  amount,  and,  as  we  sail  in  the  same 
vessel,  you  do  not  run  the  least  risk.  Even," 
added  he,  with  the  most  bland  smile  imagin- 
able— •<  even  if  I  should  die  or  lose  the  sum, 
my  valuables  on  board  the  Victoria,  on  which 
we  will  take  passage  to-morrow,  will  afford 
you  ten-fold  security  for  all  and  every  con- 
ceivable loss." 

"  But,  my  dear  sir,"  responded  George, 
who,  though  unwittingly  drawn  in,  now  be- 
came somewhat  distrustful,  "  I  have  no  know- 
ledge of  you — do  not  even  know  your  name. 
Who  is  responsible  that  you  will  really  des- 
ignate the  exact  place  where  the  gold-mines 
are  to  be  found?" 


$6  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

"Ah  !  My  name  is  Borel,  sir,  and  I  am 
known,"  answered  he,  with  assurance.  "And, 
besides,  why  should  I  deceive  you  ?  I  do 
not  mean  to  retain  your  money ;  it  is  simply 
to  serve  as  a  pledge  for  your  keeping  silence 
till  our  arrival  at  San  Francisco.  Bear  this 
in  mind.  Furthermore,  if  you  distrust  me  in 
the  least,  I  will  not  separate  from  you  at  all 
till  we  are  safe  together  on  board  the  vessel, 
where,  under  all  circumstances,  we  must  re- 
main together.  This  only  can  be  acceptable 
to  me,  for  you  so  greatly  please  me  that  real- 
ly I  am  partly  resolved,  even  in  California, 
not  to  separate  from  you,  but  to  share  my 
principal  mine  with  you.  Of  course,  only 
on  condition  that  this  is  acceptable  to  you ; 
for  I  will  not  thrust  myself  on  you. 
Preserve  me !  Not  by  any  means.  If  my 
proposition  does  not  meet  with  your  appro- 
bation, say  so  freely ;  for,  as  intimated,  I  do 
not  need  your  money,  nor  covet  it." 


BE   CAREFUL  WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  5/ 

George  put  his  wits  together,  and  hastily 
reflected  on  what  he  should  do.  Two  thou- 
sand guilders  is  indeed  much  money,  but 
what  an  immensely  valuable  secret  he  pur- 
chased with  it !  And  in  the  end,  what  had 
he  to  fear  if  he  acted  on  the  suggestion  of 
Mr.  Borel  and  did  not  suffer  him  to  leave 
him  for  a  moment  ?  No ;  there  was  nothing 
to  risk — everything  to  win. 

"Top!"  exclaimed  he,  and  reached  the  fel- 
low his  hand  across  the  table — "Top!  you 
shall  have  the  two  thousand  guilders.  But 
at  once  tell  me  the  name  of  the  place  and 
the  location  of  the  gold-mine." 

"  Not  so  fast,  not  so  fast,  my  friend !" 
laughingly  replied  Borel.  "  First  the  money, 
then  the  secret.  I  am  more  secure  for  you 
than  you  are  for  me,  for  I  cannot  get  away 
from  you,  while  you  could  betray  the  secret 
this  very  night  if  you  were  so  disposed." 

"  You  are  right,"   responded  George ;  and 


58  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

from  a  concealed  pocket  of  his  coat  he  drew 
a  large,  thick  wallet,  on  which  Mr.  Borel  cast 
eager  glances.  "  Here  are  the  two  thousand 
guilders.  Take  them !" 

"  Not  yet,  my  zealous  friend,"  replied  Borel 
with  reserved  manner.  "  First  I  will  give  you 
a  receipt  for  the  sum,  for  bear  in  mind  I  take 
your  money  only  to  hold  as  security  till  we 
reach  California." 

The  waiter  was  called,  and  pen,  paper  and 
ink  were  ordered.  Mr.  Borel  wrote  a  receipt 
and  signed  it  Henry  Borel,  pledging  him- 
self for  the  payment  of  the  sum  received  on 
their  arrival  at  California,  and  then  handed 
it  to  George,  who  read  it  with  great  satisfac- 
tion, and,  quite  relieved,  put  it  in  the  place 
which  until  now  his  handsome  two  thousand 
guilders  had  occupied. 

"And  now  for  the  spot?"  spoke  George, 
with  eagerness. 

"  It  can  be  designated  in  a  few  words," 


BE   CAREFUL   WHpM  YOU  TRUST.  59 

replied  Borel  while  stowing  the  money  away 
in  his  pocket.  "Forty  miles  east  of  San 
Francisco,  on  the  Rio  Banale,  at  the  north- 
western foot  of  the  Frio  Grande  Mountain, 
with  which  every  child  in  San  Francisco  is 
familiar,  and  precisely  under  the  twenty-' 
fourth  degree  of  latitude  and  the  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty-sixth  of  longitude.  Make  a 
note  of  this  in  your  diary,  as  I  might  die 
and  not  be  able  to  conduct  you  to  the  place. 
A  large  mahogany  tree  with  giant  branches 
marks  the  precise  spot  where  you  must 
strike  the  ground.  There  is  not  another 
mahogany  tree  in  the  whole  section,  and 
it  is  therefore  impossible  to  be  mistaken. 
Two  feet  under  the  surface  lies  the  gold — 
the  pure  gold-dust — in  such  masses  that  in 
a  single  day  you  can  get  a  wagon-load  of 
it.  This  is  my  principal  mine,  friend,  and 

* 

you  are  the  only  person  in  the  world,  be- 
sides   myself,    who    has    knowledge    of   it. 


6O  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

Some  day  you  will  thank  me  for  disclosing 
this  secret  to  you.  But  now  not  another 
word.  It  is  late,  and  we  will  retire.  I  will  of 
course  remain  with  you  and  occupy  the  same 
chamber  for  the  night,  that  you  may  be  per- 
suaded that  I  mean  to  be  honest  with  you." 
As  George  no  longer  entertained  the  least 
doubt  as  to  the  honesty  of  his  newly-made 
friend,  whose  company  was  so  agreeable  to 
him,  he  was  satisfied  with  the  arrangement 
for  both  to  occupy  the  same  sleeping-cham- 
ber. They  retired,  and  ten  minutes  later 
George  snored  vigorously,  while  Mr.  Borel 
still  lay  on  his  couch  wide  awake,  spying 
around  the  room  like  a  fox.  When  he  felt 
sure  that  his  comrade  was  fast  asleep  he 
quietly  arose  from  his  bed,  struck  a  light 
and  with  it  searched  the  room.  George's 
coat  lay  on  a  chair  before  his  bed.  Eager- 
ly the*  night-hawk  seized  it.  Turning  the 
pockets  inside  out,  he  muttered  an  oath  as 


BE   CAREFUL   WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  6 1 

he  failed  to  find  what  he  sought — namely, 
George's  wallet. 

"  He  is  more  cunning  than  I  imagined," 
said  he.  "Very  likely  he  has  taken  the 
valuable  purse  and  put  it  under  his  pillow. 
Shall  I  get  it  and  escape?  He  will  "not 
awake,  for  he  sleeps  the  deep  sleep  of  the 
drunkard  and  lies  here  utterly  unconscious. 
I  will  attempt  it." 

With  thievish  hand  he  fumbled  under  the 
pillow.  George,  indeed,  did  not  awaken,  but 
that  availed  the  rogue  nothing;  he  groped 
utterly  in  vain.  So  circumspect  had  George 
been  that  before  retiring  he  stowed  away  his 
money  in  a  secret  place — perhaps  not  from 
distrust  to  Mr.  Borel,  for  of  that  he  was  in- 
capable this  night,  but  from  habit  and  the 
usual  anxiety  we  manifest  for  the  security 
of  our  property  away  from  home,  even 
when  there  is  nothing  especially  to  fear. 

"  My  searching  amounts  to  nothing  now ; 


62  THE   GOLD- SEEKER. 

another  opportunity  will  offer  to-morrow," 
said  Borel  as  he  returned  to  his  bed.  "  When 
the  credulous  fool  awakes  and  finds  me  still 
here,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  his  confi- 
dence in  me  increases.  I  am  sure  of  it." 
With  this  remark  he  put  out  the  light,  and 
was  soon  as  sound  asleep  as  George,  with 
whom  he  vied  in  snoring  till  morning. 

When  the  sun's  early  rays  fell  into  the 
chamber,  George  raised  himself  on  his  couch. 
He  looked  bewildered  and  perplexed,  rubbing 
his  eyes  as  though  he  could  not  quite  com- 
prehend his  situation.  But  suddenly  con- 
sciousness returned  to  him ;  the  transaction 
of  the  past  evening  flashed  through  his  mind, 
and  he  glanced  wildly  over  the  room.  See- 
ing the  other  bed,  he  was  alarmed.  The  pil- 
lows lay  piled  so  high,  the  one  on  the  other, 
that  he  could  not  at  once  see  the  form  of 
his  room-mate,  and  the  first  thought  that 
occurred  to  him  was, 


BE   CAREFUL  WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  63 

"  The  fellow  is  a  rogue  and  has  decamped 
with  my  two  thousand  guilders." 

With  one  leap  he  sprang  out  of  his  bed 
and  ran  to  the  other.  But  here  lay  Mr. 
Borel,  yet  in  sweetest  slumber,  and  the  ex- 
pression of  anxiety  depicted  on  George's 
face  gave  way  to  one  of  joy. 

What  Borel  anticipated  came  to  pass : 
George's  confidence  in  his  new  friend  in- 
creased. He  murmured  expressions  of  glad- 
ness : 

"All  right !  He  has  not  deluded  me.  The 
rich  mines  of  California  are  discovered  be- 
fore I  have  set  foot  there.  Fortune  favors 
me." 

With  face  radiant  with  smiles  he  greeted 
Mr.  Borel,  who  now  awoke,  and  he  clasped 
his  hand  with  heartfelt  joy.  Borel  greeted 
him  pleasantly,  and  the  friendship  of  yes- 
terday was  renewed. 

But  this  in  no  way  hindered    Borel  from 


64  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

further  prosecuting  his  treacherous  plan,  and 
with  lynx  eye  he  watched  George  to  discov- 
er the  place  where  he  concealed  his  treasure. 
But,  whether  by  accident  or  design,  George 
proceeded  so  cautiously  that  Borel  discov- 
ered as  little  now  as  before. 

Credulous  as  George  might  be,  he  did  not 
sport  with  money  matters.  He  made  great 
haste  to  get  on  the  steamer,  and  Borel,  whom 
he  did  not  leave  for  a  second,  fearful  of  arous- 
ing suspicion  in  George's  mind  and  express- 
ing equal  concern  with  him  to  reach  the  ves- 
sel in  good  time,  ordered  the  baggage  to  be 
delivered  at  once.  He  even  escorted  George 
on  board  the  steamer,  as  though  he  were  in- 
tent on  sailing  with  him,  and  conducted  him 
through  the  ship  to  show  him  the  fixtures 
and,  besides,  as  he  said,  the  goods  and  bales 
which  he  intended  taking  to  California. 

There  were  truly  not  wanting  goods  and 
bales,  but  Mr.  Borel  concealed  not  only  the 


BE   CAREFUL  WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  65 

real  facts  in  the  case — namely,  that  they  did 
not  belong  to  him — but  boldly  asserted  that 
they  were  his  property.  This  completely  re- 
lieved the  mind  of  George  as  to  his  two 
thousand  guilders,  out  of  which  Borel  had 
swindled  him  last  evening.  This  was  just 
what  the  rogue  had  from  the  first  been  de- 
siring to  do. 

The  time  was  fast  approaching  for  the 
steamer  to  sail,  and  he  had  not  the  least  de- 
sire to  accompany  George  to  England,  where 
his  rascality  would  soon  be  detected.  He  so 
arranged  it  that  at  a  favorable  moment  he 
might  escape.  The  first  bell  for  starting 
rang,  and  Borel  saw  that  it  was  high  time 
for  him  to  depart  and  make  sure  at  least  of 
the  two  thousand  guilders.  The  last  boat 
was  sent  to  shore,  and  Borel  suddenly  as- 
sumed an  alarmed  aspect. 

"Oh,  folly!"  he  exclaimed;  "I  have  quite 
forgotten.  At  the  hotel  lie  things  of  worth 

6*  E 


66  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

with  which  I  cannot  dispense.  Fortunately, 
it  is  yet  time  to  get  them." 

"  Then  hasten,"  said  George.  "  Quick  ! 
And  if  you  desire  it,  I  will  accompany  you." 

"  No,  stay,"  replied  Borel ;  "  this  would 
only  occasion  delay.  I  will  go  alone ;  and, 
that  you  may  be  secure  that  I  will  not  escape 
you,  take  the  guilders  back.  If  I  am  belated, 
you  can  wait  for  me  at  England ;  for  I  will 
certainly  follow  you  in  the  next  steamer. 
Meanwhile,  let  us  hope  soon  to  meet  again." 
With  these  words  he  handed  George  a  worn- 
out  pocket-book  and  quickly  sprang  into 
the  boat,  which  was  about  to  make  for  the 
shore. 

Ten  minutes  afterward  the  boat  returned 
without  Borel,  who  had  improved  the  op- 
portunity for  escaping. 

For  the  last  time  the  bell  rang.  The  ma- 
chinery was  set  in  motion,  and  speedily  the 
boat  shot  from  the  road  into  the  open  sea. 


BE   CAREFUL   WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  6/ 

"What  a  pity!"  exclaimed  George.  "He 
has  belated  himself,  and  I  must  be  denied 
his  company  to  Portsmouth.  But  perhaps  the 
captain  will  wait  a  moment  if  I  request  him." 

Quickly  was  this  thought  expressed,  but 
laughingly  the  captain  motioned  him  away. 

"  It  is  too  late,"  said  he.  "  Besides,  I  do 
not  know  that  any  of  the  passengers  has 
gone  on  shore." 

"  Oh  yes,  certainly — my  companion,"  re- 
plied George.  "  You  must  have  noticed  him, 
captain." 

"  You  speak  of  your  companion  ?"  inquired 
he,  surprised.  "  He  was  not  registered  as 
passenger  on  the  vessel.  I  regarded  him  as 
an  acquaintance  of  yours  from  whom  you 
here  desired  to  take  leave." 

"  Spare  me !  It  is  Mr.  Borel,  to  whom 
belong  the  numerous  goods  and  bales  on 
the  vessel,"  said  George. 

" '  Mr.  Borel '  ?     '  Goods  and  bales  '  ?     Are 


68  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

you  demented  ?"  burst  out  the  captain,  in- 
quiringly. "  We  have  neither  a  Borel  among 
our  passengers  nor  goods  of  his  on  board." 

"  But—"  he  said. 

"Then *he  has  deluded  you  or  taken  ad- 
vantage of  you.  We  know  no  Borel  here. 
I  hope  you  have  not  suffered  yourself  to 
be  swindled  by  him?  Such  things  happen 
sometimes." 

"  No — yes — no,"  replied  George,  confus- 
edly. "  I  gave  him  two  thousand  guilders, 
but  he  returned  them  to  me  when  he  left 
for  the  shore.  They  are  contained  in  this 
pocket-book." 

"  Look,  sir,  and  I  hope  it  may  not  be  too 
late.  Here !  here  we  have  it !  I  thought 
so.  You  have  fallen  into  the  hands  of  a 
rogue." 

Yes ;  poor  George  could  no  longer  doubt 
it.  The  pocket-book  contained  nothing  more 
than  a  slip  of  white  paper — of  money  no 


BE   CAREFUL  WHOM   YOU  TRUST.  69 

trace — and  on  the  pure  sheet  written  only 
this  parting  word : 

11  With  bait  we  catch  mice.  Do  not  forget 
my  glorious  gold-mine. 

"  BOREL." 

"  The  scrub  !  the  sharper !  the  rogue  !" 
burst  out  George,  with  raving  mien.  "  Let 
us  return,  captain.  The  fellow  can  readily 
be  found,  and  then  woe  to  him !  To  the 
gallows  he  shall  go,  or  at  least  into  solitary 
confinement  for  life.  Turn  back,  captain." 

"  This  will  not  do,"  replied  he  ;  "  my  duty 
leads  me  onward,  and  I  can  on  no  condi- 
tion disappoint  forty  other  passengers.  You 
should  have  been  more  circumspect,  and  not 
have  given  the  first  ragamuffin  that  came  in 
your  way  your  money.  *  Be  careful  whom 
you  trust '  is  a  good  old  motto.  Unfortunate 
for  you  if  you  have  not  observed  it." 


/O  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

George  raged  and  raved  yet  a  good  while, 
since  the  captain  could  not  be  prevailed  on 
to  turn  back.  The  other  passengers  also 
surrounded  him,  adding  insult  to  injury  by 
deriding  his  misfortune.  Finally  forbearance 
ceased  to  be  a  virtue,  and  he  escaped  to  his 
berth,  there  to  give  free  vent  to  his  vexation. 
He  did  not  again  put  in  an  appearance  till 
their  arrival  in  the  dock  at  Portsmouth,  and 
here  he  stole  away  quietly,  so  as  not  again 
to  be  made  the  target  of  ridicule  for  his 
fellow-passengers. 

"  Yes,  yes  1"  said  the  captain  to  him  on  his 
departure  as  he  handed  him  his  luggage; 
"  when  one  is  wronged,  he  does  not  always 
meet  with  the  sympathy  he  deserves.  But  let 
this  occurrence  teach  you  a  lesson,  my  young 
friend ;  and  if  you  will  heed  the  counsel  of 
an  experienced  man,  do  not  go  to  California, 
but  rather  return  to  your  home.  You  will 
not  return  ?  Well,  every  one  is  the  architect 


BE   CAREFUL   WHOM   YOU   TRUST.  7 1 

of  his  own  fortune,  but  I  have  heard  of  but  a 
few  who  have  made  their  fortune  in  the  gold- 
country — of  more  who  sacrificed  fortune, 
health  and  life.  Be  careful  that  such  be 
not  your  fate.  And  now  the  Lord  be 
with  you  !" 

George  left.  The  parting  words  of  the 
captain  made  a  decided  impression  on  him, 
and  already  a  paroxysm  of  regret  secretly 
threatened  him. 

"  But  it  is  now  too  late,"  thought  he ;  "I 
cannot  return  without  being  ridiculed  by 
every  one ;"  and  this  was  more  than  his  fool- 
ish pride  could  endure.  So  forward,  onward 
across  the  sea  to  California.  But  he  would 
be  on  the  alert,  and  not  lend  any  one  con- 
fidence after  being  so  sadly  taken  in  by  a 
villanous  deceiver. 

"  Be  careful  whom  you  trust."  This  he 
adopted  as  his  motto  for  the  future,  especial- 
ly while  he  had  to  do  with  strangers. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE  FIRST  JOYS  OF  THE  GOLD-COUNTRY. 

r  I  ^HE  motto  which  George  in  his  present 
JL  situation  had  chosen  was  certainly  a 
good  one.  But,  to  be  candid,  he  was  far  from 
happy.  Accustomed  to  offices  of  love,  friend- 
ship and  mutual  confidence,  he  must  now,  as 
a  part  of  wisdom,  distrust  every  one.  This 
gave  him  pain.  Were  he  yet  at  home,  and 
had  he  yet  to  decide  after  the  sad  experiments 
he  had  made,  he  would  indeed  think  twice 
before  resolving  to  go  to  California.  But 
this  was  no  time  to  speculate  on  what  he 
might  have  done  with  his  present  knowledge 
of  affairs.  He  had  said  A,  he  must  also  say 
B ;  and  in  the  end — this  was  his  comforting 
thought :  in  the  end — it  would  not  be  so  bad 

72 


FIRST   JOYS   OF   THE   GOLD- COUNTRY.        73 

when,  after  the  expiration  of  years,  he  should 
return  to  his  native  land  with  large  chests  or 
bags  filled  with  gold.  Therefore  he  hurried 
to  accomplish  his  purposes.  With  his  cou- 
rageous and  resolute  spirit,  he  would  over- 
come all  difficulties.  The  matter  had  now 
to  be  gone  through  with  at  any  cost. 

Of  the  numerous  and  painful  trials  which 
George  had  to  endure  during  the  long  months 
of  his  voyage  to  the  gold-country  we  will 
say  little.  It  will  be  sufficient  to  relate  that 
he  was  subjected  to  storms,  sea-sickness  and 
deprivations  of  every  "kind ;  that,  instead  of 
the  palatable  bread  to  which  he  had  been 
accustomed  at  home,  on  shipboard  he  had 
to  eat  hard  biscuit  alive  with  vermin ;  that, 
instead  of  pure  fresh  water,  he  had  to  quench 
his  thirst  with  an  offensive  liquid  swarming 
with  animalculae;  that  with  loathing  he  de- 
voured bacon  partly  tainted.  And,  in  addi- 
tion to  all  this,  he  was  tortured  by  the  tedious 


74  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

voyage  and  experienced  homesickness  with 
all  its  attendant  horrors.  But  these  painful 
feelings  left  him  and  fresh  courage  fired 
his  spirit  when  finally  the  ~  mountains  and 
woody  shores  of  California,  shrouded  in  a 
blue,  vapory  mist,  arose,  full  of  promise, 
from  the  sea.  This  was  at  length  the  land 
where  he  hoped  to  be  enriched.  With  eyes 
sparkling  with  delight,  he  viewed  .the  green 
shores  and  the  houses  of  San  Francisco 
glimmering  from  the  luxuriant  groves. 

San  Francisco  was  the  principal  city  of 
the  gold-country,  and  George  felt  like  shout- 
ing for  joy  when  before  evening  he  set  foot 
on  the  ground  which  harbored  in  its  bosom 
such  untold  treasure.  He  directed  his  bag- 
gage to  be  taken  to  a  hotel.  After  so  long 
a  period  of  deprivation,  he  here  especially 
enjoyed  the  luscious  fruit,  just  plucked,  the 
fresh  meat  and  the  pure  water.  With  feel- 
ings of  delight  he  viewed  the  surrounding 


FIRST   JOYS   OF   THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        75 

scenery,  which,  though  usually  charming, 
was  doubly  attractive  to  him  after  having 
gazed  continuously  only  on  water  and  fir- 
mament for  many  weary  weeks.  Now  he 
again  inhaled  the  pure  land-air.  Mountains 
and  valleys  surrounded  him,  together  with 
vegetation  new  and  luxuriant;  all  of  which 
called  forth  feelings  of  admiration. 

At  once  the  sufferings  and  the  privations 
of  the  long  and  tedious  sea-voyage  were 
forgotten,  and  George  felt  like  a  new  man. 
Now  for  the  first  time  in  a  long  while  he 
exulted  in  his  resolution  to  leave  home  to 
see  something  of  the  world.  He  had  reached 
the  goal ;  the  gates  of  fortune  stood  open,  and 
he  had  but  to  pass  in  and  with  both  hands 
snatch  from  the  blessed  earth  the  smiling 
treasure  beckoning  to  him  from  every  side. 
Thus  he  sat  on  the  veranda  of  the  hotel 
till  night  set  in  and  the  moon  shed  her  sil- 
very lustre  upon  the  high  mountains  and 


76  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

into  the  deep  valleys.  Then  a  cool  breeze 
arose,  and  he  retired  to  his  chamber  to  re- 
fresh weary  nature  by  invigorating  sleep 
and  to  indulge  in  brightest  dreams  of  com- 
ing fortune. 

This  happy  feeling,  however,  was  destined 
to'last  only  till  morning;  for  new  disappoint- 
ments were  in  store  for  our  George — disap- 
pointments which  touched  a  sensitive  spot, 
his  purse.  After  the  blissful  dreams  of  the 
night  he  arose,  and,  having  for  some  time 
feasted  his  eyes  on  the  rich  scenery  which 
presented  itself  to  his  view  from  the  win- 
dows of  his  chamber,  he  rang  the  bell  for  a 
servant,  in  order  to  call  for  his  breakfast. 
A  waiter  speedily  presented  himself  to  do 
his  bidding,  at  the  same  time  holding  in  his 
hand  a  slip  of  paper  which  bore  a  very  close 
resemblance  to  a  bill,  and  which  he  present- 
ed to  George  in  the  most  courteous  manner 
conceivable. 


FIRST   JOYS   OF   THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        7/ 

"  Coffee,"  said  he,  while  indifferently  tak- 
ing the  paper. 

"  Presently,  sir,"  replied  the  waiter,  with  a 
bow  so  low  that  the  tip  of  his  nose  almost 
touched  the  floor.  "  I  must  beg  of  you  to 
settle  this  small  account.  It  is  the  custom 
of  all  the  hotels  in  this  place  to  present 
their  bills  daily." 

George's  countenance  betrayqd  his  vexa- 
tion. 

"  I  am  no  tramp,"  said  he  while  unfolding 
the  bill  and  hastily  glancing  at  its  contents. 
"  You  must  be  a  madman,"  exclaimed  he,  be- 
wildered and  terrified.  "  For  a  single  night's 
lodging  and  a  little  supper  twenty  dollars !" 

"  Twenty  dollars,"  repeated  the  waiter,  with 
the  utmost  coolness  and  the  most  indifferent 
look.  "  I  well  believe  that  you  find  it  a  lit- 
tle expensive  here — for  at  first  all  strangers 
are  amazed  at  the  high  prices — but  I  can  as- 
sure you  that  our  hotel  is  one  of  the  cheap- 


78  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

est  in  this  town,  and  that  we  could  not  afford 
to  lower  our  charges." 

"  Madness !"  burst  out  George,  in  a  rage. 
"  You  are  jesting,  sir,  and  I  am  not  disposed 
to  be  trifled, with  by  you." 

The  waiter,  shrugging  his  shoulders,  looked 
at  George  with  a  feeling  partly  of  compassion 
and  partly  of  contempt. 

"  The  bill  is  entirely  correct,"  said  he,  "and 
I  pray  you  do  not  dispute  it.  In  a  country 
where  gold  alone  is  in  great  abundance,  we 
must  naturally  weigh  everything  by  it.  If 
you  consider  our  charges  too  high,  there  is 
nothing  to  hinder  you  from  going  else- 
where." 

"Well,  I  shall  do  so  soon,"  exclaimed 
George,  burning  with  wrath.  "  This  is  high- 
handed imposition.  Take  your  money. 
There !  Not  another  moment  will  I  tarry 
in  this  hateful  apartment." 

The  waiter  betrayed  no  excitement,  as  he 


FIRST   JOYS   OF   THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        79 

may  have  been  accustomed  to  witness  such 
demonstrations.  Coolly  he  received  the 
money  which  George  hurled  at  him,  cool- 
ly receipted  the  bill,  and  returned  it  with 
another  low  bow. 

"  Until  noon  this  apartment  belongs  to 
you,"  he  told  him.  "  From  that  time  a  sec- 
ond day  will  be  charged." 

"Well,  you  shall  have  the  pleasure  of 
charging  it,"  replied  George,  at  once  getting 
ready  to  go  out  to  seek  other  quarters. 

The  joy  of  finding  himself  in  the  gold- 
country  was  considerably  lessened  by  this 
time,  and  the  beautiful  view  from  his  window 
had  no  longer  any  attraction  for  him :  it  ap- 
peared to  him  a  little  too  dearly  bought. 
His  thirst  for  coffee  had  also  forsaken  him ; 
he  took  some  water  instead,  and  then  indig- 
nantly rushed  out  of  the  hotel,  while  the 
waiter  smilingly  looked  after  him. 

"Yet  a  little  green,"  muttered  he.     "But 


8O  THE  GOLD-SEEKER. 

I   reckon  that  in  this  country  he  will  find 
more  vexation  than  gold." 

George  did  not  hear  these  utterances,  but 
inquired  of  the  first  person  he  met  on  the 
street  about  another  hotel. 

"  Come  on.  I  will  accompany  you,"  re- 
plied the  man,  very  politely ;  and  George  re- 
joiced to  find  the  people  in  the  gold-country 
at  least  polite  and  obliging,  even  if  the  prices 
were  high. 

They  walked  on  for  perhaps  five  hundred 
steps,  when  his  guide  stopped  in  front  of  a 
large  and  handsome  building,  saying, 

"Here,  sir!" 

"Thank  you,"  replied  George;  "thank 
you,  sir." 

"  I  pray  you,"  responded  the  guide,  hold- 
ing out  his  hand,  "  a  dollar  for  my  trouble." 

George  opened  wide  his  eyes  and  scarcely 
trusted  his  ears : 

"  How  ?     For  accompanying  me  this  short 


FIRST  JOYS   OF  THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        8 1 

distance  a  dollar?  This  verily  is  crowning 
impudence."  He  had  not  the  least  disposi- 
tion to  pay  this  extravagant  charge. 

The  man,  however,  on  the  refusal  of  George 
to  pay,  became  so  very  vehement  that  the 
neighbors  were  drawn  to  the  spot,  and  on 
ascertaining  the  cause  of  the  difficulty  they 
all  sided  with  the  guide,  and  George  was 
constrained  nolens  volens  to  pay  the  sum 
demanded. 

"Well,  well,  this  is  a  country  of  high 
prices,"  muttered  he.  "  If  I  do  not  soon 
discover  gold,  I  shall  be  left  without  money." 

Meanwhile,  the  guide  coolly  pocketed  his 
dollar  and  gave  himself  no  further  concern 
for  George,  who  entered  the  hotel  to  inquire 
about  lodging  and  boarding.  He  soon  dis- 
covered that  the  waiter  in  the  first  hotel  had 
not  misrepresented  matters.  The  prices  here, 
the  location  being  nearer  the  heart  of  the 
city,  were,  if  anything,  higher  than  there. 


82  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

George  shook  his  head,  feeling  betrayed 
and  sold.  Completely  dejected,  he  returned 
to  his  former  lodgings,  where  he  was  politely 
received  by  the  smiling  waiter,  and  in  his 
gloomy  condition  took  a  seat  on  the  veran- 
da of  the  hotel. 

"  My  dear  sir,"  said  he,  in  whispering  tone, 
to  the  waiter,  "  I  beg  your  pardon  :  you  were 
only  too  near  right.  I  am  persuaded  that 
this  is  a  country  of  high  charges." 

"  But  why  did  you  come  here,  sir  ?"  court- 
eously inquired  the  waiter  of  him. 

"'Why'?"  replied  George,  with  evident 
signs  of  amazement.  "  To  seek  gold,  to  be- 
come a  millionaire,  and  then  to  return.  This 
much,  however,  I  have  already  observed — 
that  to  live  here  one  must  be  rich  as  Croe- 
sus." 

"That  is  doubtless  true,"  responded  the 
waiter.  "  But  to  find  gold  you  must  not 
linger  here ;  you  must  go  some  distance  in- 


FIRST  JOYS   OF  THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        83 

land.  There  is  gold  enough  there,  while  the 
immediately  surrounding  country  is  either 
already  divested  of  its  rich  mineral  resources, 
or  has  been  taken  possession  of  by  such  as 
unceremoniously  reward  an  encroachment  on 
what  they  consider  their  rights  by  steel  or 
lead." 

"  Oh  dear !  what  a  country !"  exclaimed 
George,  sighing  deeply;  and  the  attraction, 
beauty  and  charm  of  this  El  Dorado  of  Cal- 
ifornia gradually  lessened  in  his  estimation. 
"And  what  must  one  do — how  begin  to 
search  for  the  gold?  I  pray,  dear  sir,  ad- 
vise me.  From  your  speech  I  should  judge 
you  to  be  a  countryman  of  mine,  an  upright 
German.  You  know  all  about  it;  tell  me 
how  to  proceed  to  accomplish  the  purpose 
which  led  me  to  this  detestable  region  of  the 
earth." 

"As  we  are  undoubtedly  fellow-country- 
men and  you  desire  it,  I  will  tell  you  how 


84  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

others  do,"  kindly  remarked  the  waiter.  "  I 
have  not  yet  gone  out  in  search  of  gold,  be- 
cause I  am  quite  well  satisfied  here;  and 
when  the  precious  metal  is  brought  into 
one's  house,  there  is  no  need  wearying  one's 
self  in  going  for  it." 

"Entirely  right,"  said  George;  and  the 
twenty  dollars  of  the  morning  recurred  to 
him. 

"  The  first  thing  necessary  for  you  to  do/' 
continued  the  waiter,  "  is  to  start  off"  to  ex- 
plore the  country  as  soon  as  possible,  remain- 
ing in  this  city  only  till  your  preparations  are 
completed." 

"And  what  is  the  nature  of  these  prepara- 
tions ?" 

"  First  of  all  you  must  procure  hammers, 
hoes,  shovels,  spades,  and  such  implements 
as  are  needed  to  dig  into  the  earth  where 
the  gold-dust  is  hid." 

"  Oh  dear !"  remarked  George,  again  deep- 


FIRST  JOYS   OF   THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        85 

ly  sighing.  "  It  is,  then,  not  found  on  the 
surface  ?" 

"  Sometimes,  but  the  cases  are  rare,  and 
no  calculation  can  be  based  on  Fortune  being 
so  favorable.  To  say  the  least,  searching  for 
gold  is  hard  work,  requiring  great  exertion, 
untiring  industry  and  subjection  to  depriva- 
tions of  various  kinds.  But  then,  as  a  rule, 
it  is  quite  remunerative.  Many  a  poor  fel- 
low without  a  copper,  being  simply  provided 
with  several  implements  of  labor,  after  having 
penetrated  the  country,  has  years  afterward 
returned  carrying  with  him  bags  of  gold, 
which  as  a  rule  he  then  soon  spent.  For 
you  are  familiar  with  the  German  proverb 
'  Easy  comes  easy  goes.'  But  this  is  certain : 
whoever  diligently  searches  for  gold  gener- 
ally finds  it,  provided  that  the  proper  meth- 
ods be  employed." 

"  I  will  do  my  utmost,"  said  George,  "  and 
what  I  have  when  I  return  shall  not  readily 


86  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

escape  my  hands.     But  what  do  I  need  in 
addition  to  the  implements?" 

"  If  one  can  afford  it,  a  mule  or  two  for 
the  purpose  of  transportation,  with  bags  to 
stow  away  the  gold  when  found.  By  all 
means  take  provision  with  you  into  the  wild 
regions.  And  then  you  will  need  weapons  of 
defence  against  wild  beasts,  and  against  still 
wilder  men.  And,  above  all,  resolution  and 
courage.  You  will  be  called  upon  to  endure 
a  life  of  hardships  and  dangers  of  various 
kinds.  Furnished  with  all  these  necessaries 
and  favored  by  Fortune,  you  may  chance  to 
return  to  your  home  a  rich  man,  provided 
you  do  not  fall  a  prey  to  some  of  the  numer- 
ous dangers  which  threaten  your  pathway. 
In  the  event  of  your  losing  your  life,  you 
will  of  course  need  no  gold,  as  for  the  dead 
all  treasures  of  the  earth  are  nothing  more 
than  dross  or  sand.  Your  wisest  proceeding, 
in  any  event,  would  be  to  dismiss  from  your 


FIRST   JOYS   OF   THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        8/ 

mind  your  hazardous  project  and  return  to 
Europe  by  the  next  steamer.  I  thus  advise 
you  as  a  well-meaning  friend.  To  tell  the 
truth,  of  the  many  favored  of  Fortune,  and 
having  come  in  possession  of  the  coveted 
treasure,  I  know  of  no  instance  .where  such 
riches  had  duration.  Believe  me,  dear  sir,  a 
true  blessing  does  not  rest  on  all  this  gold. 
It  passes  through  the  hand  like  water.  Even 
if  you  are  required  to  battle  with  want  at 
home,  take  my  advice  and  return." 

In  the  very  depth  of  his  soul  George  felt 
that  this  was  good  advice,  but  he  could  not 
bear  the  thought  of  returning,  now  that  he 
was  on  the  threshold  of  the  coveted  fortune. 

"  You  may  be  right,"  he  said  to  the  waiter, 
"but  I  will  at  least  make  the  experiment. 
The  country  is  before  me,  and  naturally  I 
am  not  easily  intimidated.  The  dangers 
which  threaten  may  be  overcome.  And, 
lastly,  I  cannot  bear  to  expose  myself  to  the 


88  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

ridicule  of  my  friends  by  returning  to  them 
before  fully  testing  this  matter.  This  very 
day  I  will  make  the  purchases  you  advised 
me,  and  to-morrow  start  out." 

"  Well,  do  as  you  like,"  replied  the  waiter ; 
"  I  have  counselled  you  conscientiously  and  to 
the  best  of  my  knowledge.  Still,  as  you  have 
consulted  me,  I  will  serve  you  to  the  extent 
of  my  ability  and  assist  you  in  making  the 
purchases,  so  that  you  may  not  be  too  gross- 
ly deceived  or  overcharged.  Come  on ;  we 
have  not  a  minute  to  lose." 

George  was  pleased  to  find  the  waiter,  for 
whom  he  had  formed  such  a  dislike  in  the 
morning  on  account  of  his  extravagant 
charges,  such  an  accommodating,  sympa- 
thetic friend.  He  pocketed  his  money  and 
proceeded  to  make  the  necessary  purchases. 
All  sorts  of  implements,  costing  their  weight 
in  gold,  were  procured. 

The  waiter  now  led  his  countryman  to  a 


FIRST   JOYS   OF   THE   GOLD- COUNTRY.        89 

horse-dealer,  that  he  might  provide  himself 
with  a  good  beast  for  the  journey.  The  man 
ordered  his  mules  to  be  taken  out  of  the  sta- 
ble, so  that  George  might  get  a  better  view 
of  them.  He  had  inspected  them  quite  a 
while  already,  when  all  of  a  sudden  an  ex- 
pression of  surprise  escaped  his  lips.  A 
young  fellow  who  was  just  then  leading  a 
silver-gray  mule  from  the  stable  gazed  on 
him  with  evident  signs  of  wonder  and  with 
staring  look  approached  him. 

"  Dear  me  !"  exclaimed  he ;  "  is  it  you  ?  I 
met  you  one  day  on  the  Rhine  at  Rema- 
gen,  on  the  landing,  and  now  I  must  see  you 
again  in  California." 

"  I  also  recognized  you  immediately,"  re- 
marked George.  "  Still,  I  did  not  expect  to 
find  you  as  a  stable-boy." 

"  What  was  I  to  do  ?"  replied  the  fellow. 
"  My  money  was  spent  when  I  arrived  here, 
and  you  are  doubtless  already  aware  of  the 

8* 


QO  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

high  prices  of  living  in  this  section.  The 
gold  was  not  found  in  the  streets,  as  I  had  an- 
ticipated. I  had  to  do  something  or  starve ; 
and,  as  Fortune  would  have  it,  my  present 
master  needed  a  stable-boy.  I  entered  his 
service,  and,  though  I  lead  a  dog's  life,  I  am 
thankful,  the  many  invectives  and  stripes  ex- 
cepted,  to  be  able  to  earn  my  daily  bread. 
And  you,  sir — why  have  you  come  here  ?" 

"To  seek  gold,"  replied  George,  reflecting 
as  an  incident  occurred  to  him.  "  But  what 
is  your  name?" 

"Anton  Imhof,"  he  replied — "Anton  Imhof 
of  Ravensburg.  I  wish  I  were  still  there." 

"  Perhaps  you  may  succeed  in  returning," 
said  George.  "  You  appear  to  me  a  clever 
lad.  What  say  you  ?  Accompany  me.  If 
Fortune  favor  us,  we  will  get  enough  gold  for 
both,  which  we  will  then  honestly  divide  be- 
tween us." 

Anton  shook  his  head. 


FIRST   JOYS   OF   THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        9! 

"  I  might  wish  to  go  with  you,  but  that 
would  end  it,"  said  he.  "  In  the  first  place, 
my  master  will  not  allow  me  to  leave ;  and 
then  I  have  not  a  single  copper  to  buy  even 
a  morsel  of  bread,  much  less  the  many  things 
needed  to  go  into  the  interior.  I  have  learned 
enough  already  to  know  all  that  belongs  to 
gold-seeking." 

"So  much  the  better  for  me,"  replied 
George,  who  was  anxious  to  have  some  one 
accompany  him  into  the  wild  region.  "  If 
you  do  not  lack  courage  and  promise  me 
fidelity  and  devotion,  I  will  furnish  you  with 
the  other  requisites.  I  have  enough  imple- 
ments already,  and  to  buy  another  mule  for 
you  is  a  small  matter." 

"  Good,  very  good !"  shouted  Anton,  re- 
joiced. "  If  you  are  in  earnest,  I  am  ready 
cheerfully  to  accompany  and  honestly  to 
serve  you.  Speak  to  my  master.  And," 
added  he,  in  low  tones,  "  if  you  wish  to  buy 


92  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

mules,  take  this  silver-gray  and  that  dark 
bay ;  they  are  the  best  in  the  stable." 

George  had  already  remarked  the  same, 
and  was  right  glad  that  Anton  at  once  gave 
evidence  of  readiness  to  serve  him.  He 
nodded  to  him  kindly,  and  then  turned  to 
the  dealer,  who  for  the  two  mules  asked  an 
extravagant  price  which  made  George  start 
back  several  steps.  He  haggled,  he  bar- 
gained; but  the  dealer  refused  to  take  a 
cent  less,  until  Anton,  who  stood  by  and 
heard  all,  suddenly  sided  with  George. 

"  What  are  you  up  to,  sir  ?"  said  he,  as- 
suming an  air  of  arrogance.  "  Why,  only 
last  week  you  bought  both  animals  for  the 
fourth  of  what  you  now  ask  for  them.  I 
cannot  stand  by  and  allow  you  to  take  ad- 
vantage of  a  countryman  of  mine." 

"  Fellow,  are  you  crazy  ?"  burst  out  the 
enraged  dealer.  "Another  word  and  you 
leave  my  service. 


FIRST  JOYS   OF   THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        93 

Had  the  dealer  heard  the  conversation  of 
his  stable-boy  with  George,  he  might  prob- 
ably have  detected  the  strategy  of  Anton, 
who  now  wished  to  be  turned  off  But  he 
had  just  then  been  in  the  stable,  and  was 
now  completely  deluded. 

Anton  secretly  nodded  to  George,  and 
again  boldly  addressed  his  master. 

"  To  be  candid,"  said  he,  "  this  gentleman 
is  my  countryman,  and  shall  not  be  deceived. 
Give  him  both  mules  for  the  half  of  what  you 
now  ask,  and  you  will  still  have  a  respectable 
profit." 

Rage  and  vexation  caused  the  dealer's 
countenance  to  alternate  between  ashy  pale 
and  dark  red.  For  several  moments  anger 
checked  his  speech,  but  then  he  poured  a 
flood  of  invectives  on  Anton,  struck  him 
with  his  horsewhip,  and  might  have  mal- 
treated him  shamefully  had  not  George  in- 
terfered. The  waiter  also  came  to  his  relief, 


94  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

and  at  length  they  succeeded  in  freeing  An- 
ton from  the  enraged  dealer. 

"All  right,"  exclaimed  he,  foaming  with 
wrath.  "  But  not  another  moment  shall  the 
ragamuffin  continue  in  my  service. — Begone, 
villain,  begone,  and  let  me  never  catch  an- 
other glimpse  of  you."  i 

"Agreed,  sir,"  said  Anton.  "  I  am  there- 
fore no  longer  in  your  service?" 

"  No,  no — a  thousand  times  no !"  howled 
the  dealer.  "Away  with  you,  fellow !  I  will 
have  nothing  further  to  do  with  you." 

"  Good  !  These  gentlemen  are  witnesses. 
I  am  no  longer  your  servant. — And  now, 
George,  if  he  will  not  sell  you  the  two  beasts 
for  the  sum  I  suggested  to  him,  go  with 
me  to  Arelaunus,  another  horse-dealer.  His 
animals  are  equally  good,  and  you  can  buy 
cheaper  there  than  here." 

Language  fails  to  describe  the  passion  of 
the  dealer  when  his  former  stable-boy  made 


FIRST   JOYS    OF   THE   GOLD-COUNTRY.        Q$ 

this  assertion.  Brimful  of  wrath,  he  again 
attempted  to  attack  him ;  but  Anton  fortu- 
nately escaped  so  nimbly  that. every  effort 
to  follow  him  proved  fruitless. 

Finally,  the  horse-dealer,  seeing^  himself 
exposed,  and  not  being  willing  to  lose  a  cus- 
tomer, let  George  have  both  mules  for  half 
the  figures  first  named.  The  parties  in  the 
end  separated  with  mutual  satisfaction. 

Well  pleased  with  his  bargain,  George  re- 
turned with  his  attendant,  the  waiter,  to  the 
hotel,  where  he  found  Anton,  his  new  ser- 
vant, waiting  for  him.  George  clasped  his 
hand  in  a  friendly  way,  and  repeated  his  in- 
tention to  take  him  with  him  to  the  wilds  of 
California.  He  promised  him  good  compan- 
ionship and  a  third  of  all  the  gold  they  should 
discover.  Anton  in  turn  pledged  himself  to 
be  faithful  and  obedient  to  him. 

They  remained  but  one  night  longer  in 
the  city.  Both  adventurers  were  eager  to 


96  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

be  off.  Early  next  morning  George  paid 
his  bill  at  the  hotel  and  took  leave  of  the 
waiter,  who  had  proved  himself  so  service- 
able to  him.  Although  his  purse  by  this 
time  was  well-nigh  empty,  yet  he  was  filled 
with  new  hopes.  And  now,  in  company  with 
Anton,  he  rode  away  toward  the  rich  gold 
valleys  and  ravines  of  the  interior.  What 
cared  he  if  his  money  was  almost  gone  ? 
He  was  now  approaching  the  region  where 
a  single  lucky  discovery  would  not  only 
cover  his  expenses  and  past  losses,  but  make 
him  and  Anton  at  one  stroke  so  exceedingly 
rich  as  to  be  envied  by  all  the  world. 


CHAPTER  V. 
THE    TREASURE. 

IT  soon  became  evident  that  the  com- 
panionship of  Anton  was  serviceable 
to  George  in  various  ways.  Having  been 
longer  in  the  country,  he  had  acquired 
much  knowledge  of  matters  concerning 
which  George  was  entirely  ignorant.  From 
the  gold-seekers  George  had  ascertained 
what  valleys  and  channels  are  wont  to  yield 
most  largely,  and  that  the  regions  least  vis- 
ited and  most  remote  not  only  promise  great- 
er results  than  those  nearer,  but  are  also 
more  secure  against  spying  vagrants  whom 
the  report  of  the  richness  of  the  country  had 
lured  to  California  from  the  four  quarters  of 

the  globe.     Very  frequently,  on  the  lone  and 
9  a  97 


98  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

untrodden  paths  which  they  had  to  follow, 
they  encountered  suspicious-looking  charac- 
ters whose  faces  were  expressive  of  treachery 
rather  than  of  good-will.  More  than  once 
Anton  requested  his  companion  to  give  a 
little  more  prominence  to  the  hilt  of  his  sa- 
bre and  to  his  pistols  in  the  girdle,  so  that 
every  plunderer  from  a  distance  could  see 
that  if  he  molested  the  travellers  in  any  way 
it  would  be  at  no  little  risk,  and  that  he  at 
least  could  not  expect  to  escape  without 
sabre-strokes  or  pistol-balls.  This  expedient 
had  a  good  effect.  When  these  outlaws  saw 
that  they  had  to  encounter  resolute  and  well- 
armed  men,  they  would  quickly  steal  away 
rather  than  attack  them  at  the  risk  of  their 
lives. 

The  adventurers,  besides,  in  the  early  days 
of  their  expedition,  came  across  numerous 
small  settlements,  consisting  of  diminutive 
huts  constructed  of  branches  of  trees  and 


THE  TREASURE.  99 

reared  mainly  on  the  bank  of  the  dry  bed 
of  some  stream.  Their  occupants,  instead 
of  cultivating  the  ground,  rummaged  it  eager- 
ly with  spades  and  shovels.  They  were  gold- 
seekers,  and  Anton  shunned  them  by  passing 
them  at  some  distance ;  "  for,"  said  he,  "  these 
people  are  distrustful.  They  regard  every 
passer-by  as  a  plunderer  and  murderer  covet- 
ing their  possessions,  and  sooner  than  expose 
themselves  to  the  danger  of  being  robbed  of 
their  hard  earnings  they  avoid  all  intercourse 
with  strangers,  of  whom  they  cannot  expect 
anything  at  best." 

George  replied  in  the  way  of  reflection : 
"  I  well  see  that  even  if  people  do  find  gold 
here,  they  fail  to  enjoy  peace  and  safety.  This 
much  is  certain :  when  once  I  have  realized 
my  darling  idea,  I  will  not  tarry  long  in  this 
romantic  but  inhospitable  country.  A  sad 
life,  truly,  when  we  cannot  trust  our  neigh- 
bor! At  home  it  is  otherwise." 


IOO  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

"  God  knows,"  said  Anton,  "  that  I  would 
long  ere  this  have  left  this  region  had  I  had 
the  money  to  take  me  back  to  Europe.  But 
courage,  sir!  The  farther  we  get  into  the 
interior,  the  safer  we  will  be,  and  the  more 
certain  the  fulfilment  of  our  hopes.  We 
will  gather  gold,  weigh  down  our  mules  with 
it,  and  then  away  as  fast  as  possible  to  our 
beloved  home,  which  no  one  should  leave 
who  has  any  prospect  at  all  of  earning  an 
honest  livelihood  there." 

Though  George  seldom  replied  to  these 
remarks,  yet  his  heart  fully  assented  to  their 
correctness ;  and  he  often  secretly  felt  that 
by  reason  of  his  desire  to  emigrate  and  of 
his  lust  for  gold  he  had  been  a  perfect  mad- 
man. Yet,  as  it  was,  he  must  be  patient  and 
make  the  most  of  his'  situation,  so  that  the 
purpose  of  his  foolhardy  enterprise  might  at 
least  not  prove  an  entire  failure.  He  there- 
fore zealously  pushed  his  way  into  the  unin- 


THE  TREASURE.  IOI 

habited  and  little  known  regions  of  Califor- 
nia, and  deemed  himself  quite  fortunate  in 
having  found  Anton  so  valuable  an  attend- 
ant. 

Without  him  George  would  have  fared 
badly.  He  was  himself  neither  a  hunter  nor 
a  fisherman,  nor  did  he  understand  the  indi- 
cations of  the  presence  of  gold.  Anton,  on 
the  other  hand,  was  skilled  in  hunting  and  in 
fishing ;  and  though  he  had  no  experience  in 
detecting  the  presence  of  the  precious  metal, 
yet  the  information  he  had  gained  from  gold- 
seekers  on  this  subject  now  served  him  a  good 
purpose.  He  was  the  leader,  the  guide,  a 
counsellor  of  George.  When  the  provis- 
ions taken  with  them  from  San  Francisco 
began  to  fail,  he  called  into  requisition  the 
gun  or  the  fish-net,  as  the  occasion  might  call 
for  the  use  of  the  one  or  the  other.  And  sel- 
dom did  he  return  to  George  after  a  ramble 
through  the  forest  or  along  a  stream  without 

9* 


IO2  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

carrying  with  him  some  palatable  food.  Then, 
kindling  a  fire,  he  placed  over  it  a  tin  kettle 
filled  with  water,  and  acted  as  cook  with  a 
dexterity  which  not  seldom  surprised  George. 
Anton  was  indispensable  to  him,  and  he  was 
thankful  to  be  favored  with  such  a  useful 
comrade  in  the  New  World. 

They  had  already  traversed  the  wilderness 
of  California  for  some  fourteen  days,  when 
Anton  concluded  that  it  was  time  to  find 
some  gold-beds,  and  George  too  thought  so. 
The  two  now  roved  daily  in  all  directions,  over 
mountains  and  through  valleys,  in  search 
of  the  coveted  treasure.  For  a  long  time 
their  earnest  efforts  proved  fruitless,  and 
George  began  to  realize  that  even  in  rich 
California  the  gold  was  not  so  plentiful  as 
his  fertile  imagination  had  pictured  it  to  be. 
Until  now  he  had  fancied  that  in  his  rambles 
he  could  by  the  way  gather  gold  pieces  of 
the  size  of  his  fist  and  bag  them.  He  was 


THE   TREASURE.  1 03 

not  only  obliged  to  dismiss  this  idea  from 
his  mind,  but  he  now  feared  that  he  might 
not  find  any  gold  at  all,  and  that  he  had  to 
no  purpose  left  his  home,  squandered  his 
means  and  sacrificed  his  peace  of  mind. 

Anton  encouraged  him  to  be  cheerful  and 
persevere  when  he  saw  him  indulging  in  sad 
reflections,  which  he  now  very  frequently 
did. 

"Why  so  despondent?"  said  he.  "Cali- 
fornia is  large  ;  and  if  our  efforts  are  not  suc- 
cessful here,  they  may  be  elsewhere.  Cou- 
rage, courage,  my  friend  !  The  night  of  time 
has  not  yet  come,  and  perseverance  leads  to 
success." 

With  untiring  industry  he  prosecuted  his 
search,  while  George's  zeal  flagged,  till  one 
day  toward  evening,  when  the  prospectors 
arrived  at  the  entrance  to  a  narrow  valley 
enclosed  by  high  wooded  mountains.  The 
bed  of  a  deep  and  almost  entirely  dry  rivu- 


IO4  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

let  wound  itself  between  the  mountains  and 
occupied  nearly  the  whole  breadth  of  the  val- 
ley. Though  for  the  time  being  containing 
but  little  water,  which  lazily  sought  a  narrow 
passage  amid  the  round,  smooth  stones,  yet 
the  bed  exhibited  quantities  of  matter  which 
had  been  deposited  there  amid  numerous  large 
rocks.  It  was  evident  that  the  rivulet  which 
the  prospectors  now  beheld  must  swell  dur- 
ing the  rainy  season  to  a  considerable 
stream. 

Anton  carefully  examined  the  deposits, 
rode  a  short  distance  up  the  channel  and 
suddenly  uttered  a  cry  of  delight. 

"What  now?"  exclaimed  George,  with 
tremor  in  his  voice ;  and  in  his  soul  the 
cry  resounded. 

"  This  way !  this  way !  Hurry !"  shouted 
Anton,  exultingly.  "  I  have  made  a  valu- 
able discovery." 

George  thrust  both  spurs  into  the  flanks 


THE   TREASURE.  IO5 

of  his  jaded  mule,  and,  breathless  with  ex- 
pectation and  newly-awakened  hopes,  he 
dashed  over  the  stones  to  where  Anton 
awaited  him  with  beaming  countenance. 

"  See  here !"  said  he,  showing  his  friend  a 
glittering  particle  of  yellow  metal  of  the  size 
of  a  pea.  "  What  do  you  call  this  ?" 

"  Gold,  to  be  sure,"  replied  George,  plainly 
indicating  joyful  feelings.  "  But  is  this  all 
you  have  found  ?  Judging  from  your  shout- 
ing, I  presumed  you  had  come  upon  a  lump 
of  gold  the  size  of  a  melon.  This  little  bit 
is  not  worth  stooping  for." 

"  This  shows  what  you  know  about  these 
things,"  remarked  Anton,  humorously.  "We 
can  calculate  to  a  certainty  that  we  find  our- 
selves in  the  bed  of  a  stream  leading  to  gold, 
and  this  at  least  you  will  not  pretend  to  con- 
tradict." 

"  If  this  be  so,  why  make  all  this  ado 
about  such  a  trifle?"  responded  George. 


IO6  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

"  Do  not  be  in  such  haste  to  pass  judg- 
ment, dear  friend,"  said  Anton.  "You  see 
we  are  at  the  outlet  of  the  stream,  and  are 
therefore  at  some  distance  from  the  source." 

"  Entirely  correct,  but  what  does  it  amount 
to?" 

"  It  amounts  to  this,"  said  Anton :  "  gold 
is  heavier  than  the  silt  of  the  stream,  and  is, 
in  consequence,  not  carried  so  far  as  it  by 
the  water.  From  this  it  follows  that  if  at 
the  mouth  we  find  gold,  farther  on  toward 
the  source  we  must  necessarily  find  more. 
And  if  this  narrow  valley  be  but  several 
miles  long,  we  will  find  at  its  terminus  such 
rich  deposits  as  will  bewilder  us.  For  you 
may  rest  assured  that  if  a  particle  of  gold 
of  the  size  of  a  pea  be  borne  several  miles, 
the  stream  must  be  very  strong  and  the 
channel  higher  up  must  contain  immense 
beds  of  gold." 

"  Your   reasoning   is   correct ;    I   compre- 


THE   TREASURE.  IO/ 

hend  it,"  responded  George,  whose  eyes 
now  began  to  sparkle  with  a  burning  lustre. 
"  But  why  tarry  we  ?  Why  not  at  once  as- 
cend the  channel  ?  Let  us  hasten,  lest  some 
one  should  precede  us." 

"  Do  not  be  in  such  great  haste,"  replied 
Anton.  "  This  valley  has  not  yet  been  trod- 
den by  the  foot  of  man,  or  we  should  have 
discovered  traces  on  our  way ;  there  is  there- 
fore no  occasion  for  undue  haste.  And,  more 
than  this,  night  will  soon  overtake  us,  and  it 
were  the  height  of  folly  to  begin  searching 
in  the  dark,  when  for  this  work,  above  all, 
we  need  the  full  blaze  of  day.  No ;  we  will 
remain  here  to-night,  and  to-morrow  morn- 
ing, at  sunrise,  we  will  start  off.  Take  a  good 
night's  rest,  George.  You  can  close  your 
eyes  in  peace,  for  I  verily  believe  our  fond- 
est hopes  are  being  realized.  Sleep  sweetly 
as  you  can.  Who  knows  whether  the  reality 
will  not  far  exceed  your  wildest  dreams  ?" 


IO8  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

Eager  as  George  was  at  once  to  begin  the 
work  of  prospecting,  yet  a  little  reflection 
and  a  hasty  glance  at  their  surroundings 
convinced  him  that  it  were  better  to  follow 
the  advice  of  Anton. 

The  valley  was  so  narrow  that  at  certain 
places  the  branches  of  the  trees,  projecting 
from  the  opposite  sides  of  the  mountains,  so 
interlaced  with  one  another  as  to  form  a  dense 
leaf-roof,  beneath  which,  at  midday,  a  shadowy 
twilight  rested ;  and  now  the  day  had  already 
so  far  advanced  that  only  the  loftiest  moun- 
tain-peaks were  gilded  by  the  last  glowing 
rays  of  the  setting  sun.  A  quarter  of  an  hour 
later  and  a  darkness  thick  and  all-pervading 
must  prevail  in  this  valley,  whose  high  rocky 
walls  left  barely  any  space  between  them. 

George  sprang  from  his  mule  and  aided 
Anton  in  the  preparation  for  the  night's  en- 
campment, and  then  improved  the  remaining 
period/of  daylight  by  rummaging  the  depos- 


THE   TREASURE.  1 09 

its  of  the  channel  for  gold,  while  Anton,  with 
taunting  laughter,  looked  on  : 

"  What  are  you  looking  for,  George  ?  There 
is  no  gold  here,  and  we  ought  to  be  satisfied 
in  a  general  way  to  have  detected  traces  of 
the  presence  of  such  wealth.  Spare  your  zeal 
till  to-morrow,  George;  then  your. labor  will 
without  doubt  be  more  remunerative." 

Finally,  as  the  dim  twilight  passed  into  the 
dark  shadow  of  night,  he  returned  empty- 
handed  to  his  friend,  beside  whom  he  threw 
himself,  his  heart  throbbing  with  excite- 
ment. 

Anton  soon  fell  asleep,  but  it  was  long, 
long  before  George  could  rest.  The  thirst 
for  gold  burned  in  his  veins  and  fevered  his 
nerves.  "Gold!  Gold!  GOLD!"  was  his  only 
thought.  Mountains  of  gold  appeared  to  his 
excited  fancy ;  and  if  sometimes  he  happened 
to  doze  a  little,  he  would  spasmodically  spring 

up  and  stagger  about  in  the  dark,  fearing  all 
10 


IIO  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

the  while  that  some  one  might  come  and 
divest  him  of  the  treasure  which  was  then 
not  even  found.  He  spent  a  wretched  night ; 
and  when  the  first  streaks  of  morning  cast  a 
twilight  over  the  mountains  into  the  valleys, 
he  sprang  from  his  hard  bed,  shouting  and 
shaking  Anton,  so  as  to  awaken  him. 

"Arise,  Anton !  It  is  time  to  start,"  cried 
he.  "  It  is  daylight,  and  we  have  not  a  min- 
ute to  lose." 

"Daylight,  is  it?"  replied  Anton,  bad-hu- 
moredly.  "  Why,  we  can  scarely  see  a  hand 
before  our  eyes.  Call  me  at  a  seasonable 
hour,  I  pray  you;  the  gulch  will  not  run 
away  from  us." 

He  turned  over  again,  and,  so  as  not  to 
affront  him,  George  had  to  let  him  sleep 
quietly.  His  impatience  prompted  him  im- 
petuously to  alternate  between  lying  down 
and  rising  up.  To  lose  no  time,  he  saddled 
and  packed  both  mules — a  thing  he  had  not 


THE  TREASURE.  Ill 

done  before.  It  took  him  a  short  time  to  do 
this,  and  then  he  felt  justified  in  arousing 
Anton.  He  called  him. 

Anton  opened  his  eyes,  gaped,  looked 
about  him,  and  finally  got  up  slowly  from 
his  couch. 

"A  little  early  yet,"  he  said.  "Still,  it  will 
soon  be  sunrise ;  and  meanwhile  we  can  push 
up  the  valley.  Ah !  the  mules  are  already 
saddled  and  packed?  So  much  the  better. 
I  see,  George,  you  believe  the  old  proverb, 
'  Early  to  bed  and  early  to  rise  makes  the 
man  healthy,  wealthy  and  wise.'  Let  us  see 
whether  it  will  prove  true." 

"  We  will  hope  it  will,  at  least,  and  hasten," 
replied  George,  impatiently. 

"  Hope  ?  yes !  Hasten  slowly,"  responded 
Anton.  "  We  must  proceed  deliberately,  my 
friend,  lest  we  should  get  on  a  wrong  track. 
Step  by  step  the  channel  must  be  prospected, 
for  I  have  heard  that  it  occasionally  happens 


112  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

that  other  and  smaller  valleys  containing 
small  streams  open  into  a  larger.  There- 
fore be  on  your  guard  that  such  a  valley 
does  not  escape  our  notice." 

"  This  shall  certainly  not  happen,  espe- 
cially as  you  have  called  my  attention  to 
it.  Search  the  channel,  and  I  will  watch 
the  smaller  valleys." 

"Be  it  so,"  responded  Anton.  "And, 
now  that  it  is  sufficiently  light,  let  us  pro- 
ceed." 

Both  prospectors  pushed  up  the  stream, 
leading  the  mules.  With  eyes  cast  to  the 
ground,  searching  every  gutter  and  every 
recess  like  a  bloodhound  scenting  game, 
they  advanced  slowly  forward  step  by  step, 
and  soon  another  exclamation  from  Anton 
proclaimed  another  discovery  of  gold.  Sev- 
eral hundred  steps  farther  on  the  glistening 
gold  pieces  multiplied  among  the  small  peb- 
bles of  the  channel. 


THE   TREASURE.  113 

In  the  course  of  half  an  hour  Anton  had 
collected  a  handful  of  the  size  of  peas  and 
beans.  This  success  caused  George,  instead 
of  watching  the  side-valleys,  to  watch  Anton, 
who,  with  nose  almost  touching  the  ground, 
diligently  rummaged  in  the  silt  for  gold- 
grains.  All  of  a  sudden,  however,  he  could 
discover  nothing  more  in  the  bed  of  the 
stream  than  stones,  sand  and  deposits  of 
earth. 

"  This  is  very  strange,"  said  Anton,  straight- 
ening up  and  wiping  the  pearly  sweat-drops 
which  his  diligent  seeking  had  forced  from 
his  burning  brow.  "  It  were  bad  for  us  if  the 
sand  covered  the  gold-bed.  In  this  event 
it  might  perhaps  be  necessary  to  seek  long 
for  it,  and,  unfortunately,  we  might  not  find 
it  at  all." 

George  turned  pale. 

"That  were  terrible,"  said  he.     "No,  no, 

Anton  !  entertain  no  such  fears.     There  must 
10*  H 


114  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

be  some  other  reason  for  the  disappearance 
of  the  gold  in  this  place.  Let  us  continue 
our  search.  I  doubt  not  that  the  gold-grains 
will  soon  reappear." 

"  Well,  then,  let  us  proceed,"  replied  An- 
ton, who  now  with  double  zeal  renewed  the 
work,  which  had  been  suspended  for  a  short 
time. 

They  advanced  several  hundred  steps,  but, 
carefully  as  they  rummaged  the  ground,  they 
found  nothing  but  sand  and  stones — sand  and 
stones  everywhere,  but  no  gold,  not  even  of 
the  size  of  the  head  of  a  large  pin. 

"  We  are  on  a  wrong  track,"  said  Anton, 
at  length,  with  assurance ;  "  it  cannot  be  oth- 
erwise, George.  You  must  have  overlooked 
a  side-valley." 

George  contradicted  him,  but  Anton,  turn- 
ing back,  on  a  sudden  found,  three  hundred 
steps  from  where  they  had  started,  the  nar- 
row mouth  of  a  dry  channel  partly  covered 


THE   TREASURE.  11$ 

with  bushes.  Quickly  he  rushed  into  it, 
George  following  close  to  him,  and  a  loud 
cry  of  delight,  which  echoed  through  the 
forests,  indicated  that  they  had  again  dis- 
covered the  lost  track. 

"  Here  you  see  how  blinding  covetousness 
is,"  said  Anton  to  his  companion.  "  Had  you 
looked  about  you  more  carefully  than  be- 
fore you,  we  would  have  been  spared  these 
painful  feelings.  But  we  shall  not  lose  by 
it.  I  see  we  are  near  the  goal :  the  gold- 
grains  lie  thicker  and  become  larger.  Let 
us  go  forward." 

Forward  they  went.  But  soon  the  adven- 
turers were  obliged  to  leave  their  mules  be- 
hind, as  the  channel  became  so  narrow  that 
the  animals  could  not  squeeze  through. 
They  crept  slowly  upward,  forced  their  way 
under  thorny  bushes,  crawled  on  hands  and 
feet  where  the  underbrush  was  dense,  and 
finally  reached  a  basin-shaped  recess  where 


Il6  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

the  streamlet  was  suddenly  cut  off.  A  cleft 
wall  of  rock  arose  perpendicularly  before 
them.  There  was  every  indication  that  in 
the  rainy  season  the  swollen  stream  here 
formed  a  waterfall. 

Anton  burst  into  ecstasies  and  shouted  as 
with  trembling  hand  he  rummaged  the  bot- 
tom of  the  basin : 

"  George,  the  nest  is  found  !  Here  lie  the 
golden  eggs !" 

Yes,  here  they  were.  Amid  the  white 
sand  glimmered  the  scattered  masses  of  pre- 
cious metal,  accumulating,  perhaps,  for  cen- 
turies in  this  natural  washer.  Trembling, 
panting  and  with  eyes  glowing  with  emo- 
tion, the  adventurers  stared  at  the  treasure, 
for  which  now  they  had  but  to  reach  to  get 
it  into  their  possession.  Consequent  on  the 
first  impulse  of  their  rapture,  they  fell  into 
each  other's  arms  and  wept  sweet  tears  of  joy 
over  their  immense  possessions. 


THE   TREASURE.  1 1/ 

"We  have  found  our  fortune,"  said  An- 
ton, finally ;  "  it  but  remains  for  us  to  get  the 
hoes,  spades  and  bags  in  order  to  gather  our 
wealth.  Let  us  not  delay.  It  is  early  in  the 
day,  and  by  evening  the  entire  basin  can  be 
stirred  around  and  around." 

George  needed  no  further  urging.  Both 
hurried  back  to  their  mules,  brought  the  im- 
plements and  bags,  and  at  once  began  their 
wearisome  but  immensely  productive  and  re- 
munerative labor.  Immediately  under  the 
loose  deposit  lay  a  bed  of  pure  gQld,  under 
this,  again,  a  layer  of  sand,  and  again  followed 
a  stratum  of  gold.  Five  or  six  times  this  al- 
ternation occurred. 

Anton  readily  accounted  for  this. 

"  During  each  rainy  season,  when  the  wa- 
ter pours  over  these  rocks  into  the  basin,  it 
carries  with  it  gold  and  loose  material,"  said 
he.  "  The  gold,  as  the  heavier,  settles  below, 
and  the  silt  on  the  top  of  it.  In  this  way 


Il8  .THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

originated  these  beds,  whose  riches  seem  to 
be  inexhaustible." 

This  view  of  the  origin  of  these  layers  of 
gold  appeared  very  plausible  to  George,  al- 
though he  made  no  responses  and  also  paid 
little  attention  to  the  subject.  The  treasure 
in  itself  was  of  ten  thousand  times  more 
value  to  him  than  any  knowledge  whatever 
as  to  the  origin  of  the  beds.  He  indulged 
in  the  fulfilment  of  his  fondest  dreams,  and 
the  most  diversified  air- castles  arose  in  glit- 
tering splendor  before  his  intoxicated  vision. 
Already  he  saw  himself  returned  home  rich 
as  a  Croesus,  and  .all  the  dangers  still  inter- 
vening fled  before  the  swelling  enthusiasm 
of  his  heart,  whose  covetousness  in  this 
moment  was  fully  sated. 

But  this  feeling  of  excitement  soon  yield- 
ed to  calmer  reflection.  He  cast  a  dark  and 
wicked  glance  at  Anton ;  like  ice  fell  into  his 
burning  passion  the  thought  that  he  must 


THE   TREASURE.  1 19 

share  the  rich  treasure  before  him  with  an- 
other. It  never  occurred  to  him  that  Anton 
had  proved  most  serviceable  to  him,  that  with- 
out him  he  evidently  would  never  have  found 
these  riches,  and  that  without  his  precaution 
and  knowledge  of  affairs  he  would  doubtless 
have  perished  in  these  wild  regions.  The  evil 
demon  of  avarice  so  irresistibly  possessed 
him  that  hellish  designs  were  forming  in  his 
bosom,  and  he  entertained  a  perfect  hatred 
toward  his  companion,  who  to  this  moment 
had  proved  so  faithful  and  serviceable.  But 
these  superior  qualities  of  Anton  were  now 
lost  sight  of.  George  saw  only  the  gold — the 
glittering,  sparkling  gold — which  Anton  dug 
from  the  ground.  Every  power  within  him 
resisted  a  division  with  his  comrade. 

"  Never !"  muttered'  he — "  never !  This 
gold  is  mine ;  let  him  seek  other  beds.  Had 
I  not  taken  him  with  me,  had  I  not  provided 
him  with  a  mule,  with  implements  and  weap- 


I2O  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

ons,  he  might  still  be  a  stable-boy  with  that 
heartless  horse-dealer.  I  will  let  him  keep 
his  animal  and  half  the  weapons  and  imple- 
ments ;  he  cannot  expect  more  from  me.  It 
would  be  utter  presumption  for  him  to  ex- 
pect me  to  share  this  treasure  with  him." 

This  matter  was  soon  settled  in  his  mind. 

Whether  Anton,  while  busily  engaged  in 
digging  for  gold,  had  read  the  feelings  of 
George  in  the  changing  expressions  of  his 
countenance,  or  whether,  perhaps,  like  him, 
he  entertained  similar  feelings  of  avarice, 
who  can  tell  ?  Enough,  a  change  of  mind 
and  feeling  had  occurred  in  both,  and  just 
when  their  hearts  should  have  been  bound 
together  most  closely.  Their  success  and 
the  realization  of  their  wild  dreams  seemed 
to  have  produced  between  them  a  rent  not 
to  be  healed.  Anton  cast  just  as  distrustful 
glances  at  George  as  George  at  him,  although 
each  kept  up  the  appearance  of  devotion  and 


THE   TREASURE.  121 

friendship  for  the  other.  From  the  moment 
that  this  rich  but  perishable  treasure  had 
fallen  into  their  hands — fallen,  as  it  were, 
from  heaven,  or  we  might  perhaps  with  more 
propriety  say  raked,  as  it  were,  from  the 
depth  of  hell — any  one  might  have  noticed 
that  both  these  men  were  completely  un- 
der the  power  of  the  evil  demon  of  gold. 

The  gold-seekers  labored  untiringly,  scarce- 
ly taking  time  to  eat  or  to  drink.  By  evening 
the  greater  part  of  their  sacks  were  filled 
with  gold-dust  and  solid  pieces,  some  of  the 
size  of  a  fist.  But  now  the  gold  seemed  ex- 
hausted. Beneath  the  last  sand-bed  simply 
lay  black  earth,  and  under  it,  although  An- 
ton dug  deeper,  they  found  nothing  which 
indicated  more  gold. 

"  Well,  we  have  enough,  and  have  reason 
to  be  satisfied,"  said  he,  while  he  gave  up 
his  fruitless  efforts  and  wearily  rested  on  the 

handle  of  his  spade.     "  The  bags  which  lay 
11 


122  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

around  contain  enough  gold  to  buy  sev- 
eral counties  in  Germany.  The  next  thing 
in  order  is  to  return  to  San  Francisco  and 
there  take  passage  and  sail  home." 

"  That  is  my  idea,"  replied  George,  curtly, 
without,  however,  once  turning  his  eyes  from 
the  full  bags.  "  What  now  ?" 

"Well,  we  must  lead  the  mules  with  the 
gold,"  replied  Anton.  "  To-morrow,  at  day- 
break, we  will  break  up  camp  and  return  by 
the  shortest  route  to  San  Francisco." 

"  Yes,  this  we  will  do,"  said  George.  "  We 
will  this  very  evening  lead  our  beasts ;"  and 
in  thought  he  added,  "  How  well  he  plays 
into  my  hands !  He  will  be  surprised  when 
he  will  in  vain  look  for  me  and  the  gold- 
bags  to-morrow  morning." 

Anton  shouldered  a  full  bag,  and  so  did 
George.  These  were  carried  to  a  spot  not 
far  from  where  the  mules  were  tethered. 
Five  bags  apiece  were  carried  there,  and 


THE   TREASURE.  12$ 

then  the  precious  possession  was  packed  on 
the  animals.  After  consuming  their  plain 
evening  meal  they  stretched  out  on  the 
ground  near  the  mules,  very  few  words 
passing  between  them. 

"  The  one  awakening  first  awakens  the 
other  at  last,"  remarked  George. 

Anton  responded  with  a  short  "Yes." 

After  this  both,  wrapped  in  their  mantles, 
lay  still. 

George  reckoned  that  Anton,  as  last  night, 
would  soon  sink  into  so  deep  a  sleep  as  to 
be  awakened  only  with  difficulty.  When 
this  had  taken  place,  he  intended  getting 
up,  slyly  loading  the  sacks  on  his  own 
mule  and  secretly  escaping.  This  plan  he 
revolved  in  his  mind  and  firmly  resolved 
to  carry  out,  regardless  of  the  gratitude 
which  he  was  conscious  was  due  Anton. 
Impatiently  he  waited  for  the  deep  breath- 
ing which  indicates  sound  sleep,  and  mur- 


124  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

mured  imprecations  as  ever  and  anon  he 
heard  the  restless  tossing  of  Anton  from 
side  to  side  on  his  earth-couch.  A  feeling 
of  drowsiness,  with  difficulty  resisted,  occa- 
sionally came  over  him.  The  past  night  he 
had  slept  and  rested  little,  and  the  day  had 
been  spent  amid  exhausting  toil  and  still 
more  exhausting  excitement.  True,  he 
struggled  desperately  against  this  feeling, 
and  several  times  aroused  himself  by  force 
from  his  stupor;  but  finally  his  eyelids 
drooped  with  leaden  weight.  From  a  state 
of  wakefulness  he  fell  into  dreaming  bewil- 
dering dreams,  and  his  quick,  strong  breath- 
ing became  slower  and  slower;  and  toward 
midnight  George  slept  as  though  dead. 

There  was  a  rustling  by  his  side.  Per- 
haps the  wind  stirred  the  leaves  of  the  trees 
or  a  timid  wild  beast  was  frightened  away 
by  a  greedy,  bloodthirsty  robber.  George 
was  not  awakened  by  the  stir.  Steps  were 


THE   TREASURE.  125 

perceptible,  then  the  clashing  of  horseshoes 
on  the  stones,  then  a  peculiar  snuffing  and 
snorting.  George  still  slept.  The  steps 
were  more  distant,  and  became  gradually 
softer,  until  finally  they  died  away  entirely. 
He  still  lay  breathing  deep  and  motionless 
on  the  ground,  and  dreaming  perhaps  gold- 
en dreams  of  unheard-of  success,  which  dur- 
ing the  day  had  crowned  him. 

The  morning  dawned.  The  dew  hung  in 
large  drops  on  the  leaves  and  blades  of  grass, 
and  even  on  the  glowing  face  of  George. 
This  cool  moisture  awakened  him.  Rub- 
bing his  eyes,  he  sprang  to  his  feet  and 
cast  an  inquisitive  gaze  about  him.  His 
look  next  betrayed  surprise,  and  then  fear 
and  doubt.  Where  was  Anton?  Where 
were  the  mules  ?  Where  was  the  gold  ? 
All  had  disappeared  as  if  swallowed  by 
the  earth :  not  a  trace  remained. 

George  ran  through   the   nearest  bushes, 
11* 


126  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

called,  screamed  "Anton !"  bellowed  with 
fury,  rage  and  despair.  But  Anton  did  not 
respond.  George  howled  and  raved,  threw 
himself  on  the  ground,  beating  his  breast 
and  tearing  his  hair.  At  last  he  fell  into  a 
dull  stupor,  in  which  he  lay  for  some  time, 
when  it  occurred  to  him  to  pursue  the  es- 
caped traitor  and  thief  and  rescue  the  spoil, 
and,  if  necessary,  struggle  with  the  rascal 
for  life.  Avarice  and  despair  had  driven  him 
so  far  that  he  now  panted  for  the  life-blood 
of  him  who  for  weeks  had  been  his  good 
friend  and  faithful  attendant.  He  looked 
for  his  weapons — gun,  pistols  and  knives. 
But  these  had  disappeared  with  Anton,  who 
perhaps  had  taken  them  with  him  for  protec- 
tion against  the  supposed  fury  of  his  betrayed 
comrade.  George  found  nothing  but  a  shov- 
el, a  hoe  and  two  empty  sacks,  which  lay  on 
the  ground  in  the  neighborhood  of  their 
night's  encampment.  A  paper  fluttered  in 


THE   TREASURE.  12; 

the   cleft   handle    of  the   shovel.      He   read 
the  following,  written  with  a  lead-pencil: 

"  You  sought  in  vain  to  delude  me,  you 
ungrateful  rogue !  I  read  your  purpose  in 
your  eyes.  You  designed  this  night  secret- 
ly to  flee  with  our  common  treasure  and 
leave  me  alone  in  this  wilderness.  Thus, 
then,  you  intended  expressing  your  thanks 
for  my  faithful  labor.  You  forgot  that  it  was 
I  who  led  and  guided  you,  that  it  was  I  who 
discovered  the  rich  gold-bed.  To  me,  there- 
fore, belongs  the  gold;  and,  instead  of  shar- 
ing with  me,  you  wished  to  keep  all.  I  am 
ahead  of  you.  Let  this  serve  as  a  punish- 
ment for  your  covetousness  and  .shameless 
ingratitude.  Try  your  success  alone.  Hoe 
and  shovel  I  leave  you,  and  I  hope,  besides, 
you  may  be  as  fortunate  without  me  as  you 
were  with  me.  Lose  no  time  in  pursuing 
me.  I  know  the  wood  better  than  you,  and, 


128  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

more  than  this,  I  have  such  a  start  of  you 
that  you  can  never  overtake  me.  May  you 
be  fortunate !  and  let  this  punishment  which 
of  right  is  inflicted  on  you  serve  to  make 
you  a  better  man. 

"  ANTON." 

In  his  wrath  George  foamed,  raved  and 
howled.  He  threw  the  paper  on  the  ground 
and  trod  it  under  his  foot;  then  he  picked 
it  up  and  tore  it  into  a  thousand  fragments. 
All  the  invectives  that  he  had  ever  heard  or 
that  his  mind  could  conjure  up  were  hurled 
against  the  flying  Anton. 

In  these  useless  demonstrations  of  rage 
George  probably  spent  half  a  day.  His  ap- 
petite for  food  at  length  reminded  him  that  a 
senseless  whining  alone  could  never  conquer 
despair.  He  looked  about  for  edibles,  and 
found  some  fruits  and  vegetables  to  appease 
his  hunger.  This  somewhat  calmed  him, 


THE   TREASURE.  129 

and  he  began  to  meditate  as  to  his  future 
plans.  He  was  now  stripped  of  everything. 
His  entire  property  was  gone,  and  he  was 
left  as  poor  as  a  beggar.  Without  friends  or 
resources  he  could  do  nothing  but  adopt  the 
course  recommended  to  him  by  the  faithless 
Anton.  He  could  only  remain  and  search 
for  new  sources  of  wealth,  and  endeavor  at 
least  to  accumulate  enough  to  enable  him  to 
return  to  San  Francisco,  and  thence  to  his 
old  home  in  Germany.  He  concluded  on 
the  next  morning  to  again  rummage  the 
basin  where  Anton  had  found  the  lumps 
of  gold,  and  to  gather  the  few  grains  which 
might  have  been  left  of  yesterday's  harvest ; 
then  to  follow  the  channel,  and  there  also  to 
collect  the  scattered  particles ;  and  finally,  if 
the  gains  were  unsatisfactory,  not  to  rest  un- 
til he  had  made  new  and  productive  discov- 
eries. With  this  determination,  at  nightfall 
he  lay  down  for  a  night's  sweet  repose. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

A   NEW  DISCOVERY. 

THE  refreshing  sleep  had  again  soothed 
the  powerfully  excited  and  almost 
shattered  nerves  of  George,  and  he  awoke 
composed,  with  renewed  vigor  and  courage. 
Hope  had  returned,  and  he  went  to  work 
unembarrassed  by  his  late  gloomy  feelings. 
Busily  engaged  with  pick  and  spade,  he  dug 
over  the  bed  of  the  dried-up  stream  and 
made  a  most  industrious  search  for  what 
scattered  particles  of  gold  he  could  find 
amid  the  sand  and  the  pebbles.  Before 
nightfall  he  had  gathered  a  full  handful  of 
the  precious  metal. 

But  he  had  by  this  time  also  found  gold- 
hunting  to  be  a  very  wearisome  and  laborious 

130 


A   NEW   DISCOVERY. 

task — not  nearly  so  encouraging  as  had  been 
the  easy  snatching  up  of  the  heaped  masses 
in  the  basin  the  day  before.  The  sun  was 
fiercely  hot,  almost  scorching  his  brain,  and 
many  a  drop  of  perspiration  oozed  out  of  his 
skin  while  he  was  collecting  this  little  quan- 
tity of  ore.  But  he  had  found  some.  The 
pile  was  increasing  by  degrees,  and,  although 
it  was  doing  so  but  slowly,  it  revived  his 
spirits  and  stimulated  him  to  fresh  exer- 
tions. 

He  had  scoured  the  stream-bed,  and  be- 
took himself  to  the  rubbish  in  the  basin. 
Here  the  result  soon  proved  more  encour- 
aging than  it  had  done  the  day  before;  for 
neither  he  nor  Anton  had  sifted  this  very 
closely  because  of  the  abundance  of  ore. 
When  the  second  evening  came  his  accu- 
mulations had  more  than  doubled,  and  his 
feverish  hopes  had  risen  in  still  greater 
proportion. 


132  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

George's  situation  caused  him  to  reflect. 
He  called  to  mind  Anton's  theory  of  the 
gold-bed,  and  from  that  drew  an  inference 
that  certainly  seemed  most  plausible — suf- 
ficiently so,  at  least,  to  elate  him  and  cause 
the  hopeful  blood  to  course  through  his 
heart  quicker  and  quicker.  Thus  he  solil- 
oquized : 

"  Each  stratum  of  gold  originated  here 
from  deposits  left  by  heavy  rains ;  there 
must  be  more  underneath  than  the  few  lay- 
ers we  have  opened.  This  waterfall  may 
have  been  in  existence  for  hundreds  of  years, 
and  during  each  of  these  years  the  swelling 
stream  poured  down  the  rocky  heights  must 
have  carried  with  it  stones,  earth  and  gold. 
Therefore  the  gold-washing  of  earlier  years 
either  must  be  imbedded  beneath  the  layers 
explored  by  Anton  or  else  there  must  be 
another  basin  above  this  rock,  in  which  the 
deposits  collected  and  sank  before  reaching 


A   NEW    DISCOVERY.  133 

this  fall.  To-morrow  I  shall  make  further 
investigations." 

George  awaited  the  next  rising  sun  with 
burning  impatience,  and  long  before  his 
first  rays  reached  over  the  mountain-peaks 
he  grasped  pick  and  spade  and  began  anew 
to  dig  the  bottom  of  the  basin.  He  dug  to 
the  depth  of  several  feet,  but  found  nothing 
to  justify  his  hopes,  and  at  last  dropped  his 
implements  in  bitter  disappointment.  But, 
shortly  recovering,  he  said  to  himself, 

"Still,  why  should  I  despair?  Is  there 
not  some  hope  of  success  in  scaling  this 
rocky  wall  ?  Away  to  work,  then  !" 

He  hunted  for  more  than  an  hour  for 
some  avenue  by  which  he  might  climb  the 
precipice,  which  was  so  steep  and  rugged 
that  the  nimble  chamois  could  scarcely  have 
clambered  it.  Finally  he  found  in  the  rock  a 
crevice  completely  overgrown  with  bushes, 

through   which    he   eagerly   ascended.      He 
12 


134  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

reached  its  height  after  the  most  fatiguing 
exertions,  but  not  until  his  face  and  hands 
were  bleeding  from  the  lacerating  thorns. 

Now  it  was  an  easy  matter  to  find  the  dry 
bed  of  the  stream  which  during  the  rainy 
season  formed  the  waterfall,  and  through 
which  the  gold  was  carried  into  the  basin 
beneath.  With  breathless  haste  he  followed 
the  tortuous  bed,  and  in  a  short  time  reached 
a  point  near  the  edge  of  the  precipice  where 
it  widened  into  a  larger  basin  than  the  one 
below.  Here  he  kicked  aside  the  sand,  and 
then  fell  to  the  ground  with  an  outburst  of 
rapture.  He  was  not  disappointed :  the  re- 
sult had  more  than  confirmed  his  expecta- 
tions. He  now  stood  on  a  layer  of  gold 
which  exceeded  in  richness — perhaps  ten- 
fold— the  one  found  below  the  waterfall. 

George  required  several  minutes  to  re- 
cover from  his  happy  excitement,  which  had 
almost  stupefied  him.  He  laughed,  he  wept, 


A   NEW    DISCOVERY.  135 

he  screamed  with  exultation,  all  in  one 
breath.  He  was  beside  himself  for  joy. 
He  snatched  gold  pieces  as  large  as  a  fist, 
and  handled  them  as  caressingly  as  if  they 
were  living  pets.  He  pressed  them  to  his 
lips  and  with  both  hands  rummaged  in  the 
mass  of  gold,  whose  value,  in  a  word,  was 
incalculable. 

As  his  reason  gradually  returned  he  be- 
gan more  closely  to  investigate  the  gold- 
bed.  The  whole  basin  was  filled  to  the 
depth  of  over  a  foot  with  the  shining  ore, 
and,  as  it  was  several  yards  wide,  George 
could  readily  believe  that  he  had  discovered 
riches  perhaps  unequalled  in  the  outside 
world.  Nature,  in  forming  this  basin,  had 
made  it  a  casket  of  gold.  The  heavy  metal 
had  to  sink  in  this  recess,  and  the  stream 
could  only  bear  some  of  it  away  when  the 
basin  was  by  it  filled  to  overflowing.  Thus 
this  treasure  may  have  lain  here  for  ages 


136  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

untouched  by  the  hand  of  man,  until  finally 
George  became  the  lucky  finder. 

"Anton,  what  a  simpleton  you  were  to  leave 
me  !"  exclaimed  he,  exultingly,  after  having 
feasted  his  eyes  to  blindness  on  the  sparkling 
lustre  of  the  precious  ore.  "  Had  you  re- 
mained with  me,  we  might  each  be  fully 
contented,  and  your  faithlessness  deprives 
you  of  greater  treasures  than  those  of  which 
you  so  maliciously  robbed  me." 

While  he  called  to  mind  the  friend  who 
had  proved  so  treacherous,  it  also  occurred  to 
him  that  he  had  taken  with  him  both  mules ; 
and  his  happy  musings  were  changed  into  feel- 
ings of  terror,  and  almost  of  despair.  How 
was  he  to  carry  away  his  wealth  ?  How  was 
he  to  find  his  way  back  to  the  settlements  ? 
Until  now  Anton  had  served  as  leader  and 
guide  to  him.  George  knew  not  even  what 
course  to  take  to  get  to  San  Francisco ;  for 
so  long  as  Anton  was  with  him  he  had  no 


A   NEW   DISCOVERY.  137 

concern  for  anything,  and  consequently  paid 
no  attention  to  the  paths  they  had  travelled. 
They  had  ridden  hither  and  thither  through 
the  forests,  now  toward  sunrise,  now  toward 
sunset.  George  vainly  racked  his  brain  to 
find  a  leading-thread  out  of  this  labyrinth. 

Then  another  thing  alarmed  him :  even  if 
he  should  find  a  return  path,  on  what  could 
he  subsist  during  the  long  journey  ?  Anton, 
as  guide,  was  also  hunter,  fisherman  and  cook. 
George  had  neither  weapons  nor  nets,  nor 
could  he  even  kindle  a  fire,  since  Anton  had 
also  taken  with  him  the  tinder-box  with  it's 
contents.  To  cap  the  climax,  George  was 
without  any  means  of  defence,  exposed  to 
the  attack  of  any  roving  robber  who  might 
be  provided  with  weapons  and  be  lusting 
after  his  riches.  His  condition,  notwithstand- 
ing the  vast  wealth  which  he  had  discovered, 
appeared  in  no  sense  enviable. 

George  had  to  endure  all  the  tortures  of  a 

12* 


138  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

Tantalus.  He  shook  with  fear  and  trembled 
at  the  thought  of  the  thousandfold  cares  and 
dangers  which  awaited  him  in  the  near  future. 
Here  he  was  in  possession  of  a  pile  of  gold 
of  such  richness  as  to  blind  his  sight,  his 
most  wayward  dream  had  been  realized,  and 
the  reality  exceeded  his  most  extravagant 
hopes ;  and  still —  Where  now  was  the 
happiness  which  he  had  promised  himself 
from  the  riches  of  California? 

"  Of  what  use  to  me  is  all  this  gold  ?" 
muttered  he,  while  with  dejected  spirit  he 
stared  at  his  possessions.  "The  half,  two- 
thirds,  nine-tenths,  I  would  cheerfully  give 
if  with  the  remainder  I  were  at  home  safely 
and  peaceably.  What  can  I  do  to  secure  but 
a  little  of  this  gold,  in  order  with  it  to  reach 
San  Francisco?" 

He  began  to  reflect  as  to  the  best  course 
to  pursue  under  existing  circumstances.  At 
-length  he  concluded  to  bury  all  the  gold  in 


A   NEW    DISCOVERY.  139 

different  places,  and  to  take  with  him  only  so 
much  of  it  as  he  could  carry  in  his  pockets 
and  in  the  two  bags  which  Anton  had  left  him. 
Then  he  would,  endeavor  to  reach  some  set- 
tlement, buy  other  mules  and  weapons,  and 
with  them  return  to  his  hidden  treasure.  To 
make  sure  of  the  spot  where  his  wealth  lay 
buried,  he  purposed  making  private  marks ; 
and  thus,  he  thought,  he  might  eventually 
succeed  in  securing  his  discovery,  in  spite 
of  wearisome  toil  and  danger. 

This  conclusion  was  certainly  the  wisest  he 
could  arrive  at,  and,  as  in  the  face  of  planning 
and  speculating  nothing  better  occurred  to 
him,  he  at  once  proceeded  to  carry  out  his 
project.  About  one  hundred  yards  from  the 
basin  stood  a  group  of  trees.  In  their  shade, 
in  the  sweat  of  his  face,  he  dug  three  deep 
holes,  and  into  them  put  the  greater  part  of 
his  treasure.  After  this  he  covered  them  over 
with  earth,  levelled  the  places  as  well  as  he 


I/J.O  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

could,  to  give  them  as  unsuspicious  an  ap- 
pearance as  their  surroundings,  and  so  ac- 
curately marked  their  situation  that  on  his 
return  he  would  have  no  difficulty  in  find- 
ing them. 

To  effect  all  this  George  spent  three  full 
days,  and  they  were  evil  days — days  full 
of  anguish  and  privation.  The  care  most 
racking  his  brain  was  the  fear  of  being  sur- 
prised by  roving  adventurers  and  by  them 
stripped  of  his  wealth.  For  this  reason  he 
toiled  with  a  zeal  which  barely  left  him  time 
to  satisfy  his  hunger  with  wild  fruits  and  roots. 

But  at  length  it  was  accomplished ;  and, 
with  somewhat  relieved  mind,  George  now 
thought  of  returning  to  San  Francisco.  He 
filled  his  two  bags,  as  well  as  his  pockets, 
with  the  largest  and  most  valuable  gold  pieces, 
and,  fastening  the  former  to  his  implements, 
he  threw  them  across  his  shoulders.  Then, 
grasping  a  heavy,  solid,  thorny  staff,  which 


A   NEW    DISCOVERY.  14! 

would  serve  as  a  support  as  well  as  for  a 
weapon  of  defence,  he  resumed  his  wander- 
ing through  the  wilderness  of  California. 

It  was  a  strange  figure  that  journeyed. 
The  long  beard,  which  had  not  been  trimmed 
for  many  weeks,  ran  in  wild  luxuriance  about 
his  pale,  wasted  face ;  his  bushy  hair  had 
become  a  stranger  to  comb  and  brush ;  his 
garments  were  ragged,  and  his  boots  so  torn 
that  they  no  longer  protected  his  feet.  No 
one  looking  at  him  would  have  supposed 
him  to  be  the  custodian  of  well-filled  bags 
of  gold ;  he  would  sooner  have  been  regard- 
ed as  a  miserable  beggar,  if  nothing  worse. 

But  poor-rich  George  was  just  now  per- 
fectly indifferent  as  to  his  appearance.  His 
only  care  was  to  secure  his  treasure,  and 
until  that  was  done  he  was  willing  to  en- 
dure this  life  of  wretchedness.  For  he  was 
supremely  wretched  and  miserable,  notwith- 
standing his  buried  riches. 


142          .  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

He  clambered  down  the  crevice,  and  at 
the  edge  where  it  opened  into  the  lower 
valley  reared  a  small  pyramid  of  stones  as 
a  guide  to  the  avenue.  Then  he  descended 
the  channel  to  the  place  where  Anton  had 
discovered  the  first  traces  of  gold,  and  there 
built  a  second  pyramid.  For  several  days, 
at  each  turn  of  the  way  he  made,  he  threw 
up  a  pile  of  stones. 

Sad  and  weary  was  his  journey.  The 
heavy  burden  made  his  shoulders  sore; 
walking  over  the  rough  and  stony  ground 
crippled  him ;  and  from  want  of  sufficient 
and  wholesome  nourishment  his  body  grew 
weaker  and  weaker,  until  the  unfortunate 
Croesus  could  drag  himself  along  only  with 
great  effort. 

Eventually,  after  wandering  for  weeks, 
George  again  noticed  traces  of  inhabited 
regions.  Solitary  log  huts  emerged  from 
the  uniform  verdure  of  the  forest,  and  occa- 


A   NEW    DISCOVERY.  143 

sionally  he  even  beheld  human  forms,  which, 
like  himself  not  long  before,  rummaged  the 
sand  and  gravel  of  channels  for  gold.  This 
sight,  however,  instead  of  inspiring  him  with 
a  feeling  of  greater  security,  only 'served  to 
incite  new  fears.  Might  not  all  these  per- 
sons be  robbers  and  cut-throats?  Might 
there  not  in  these  huts  lurk  desperadoes  who 
would  make  no  conscience  of  killing  the  lone- 
ly wanderer,  and  thus  offer  him  up  in  cold 
blood  in  order  to  obtain  his  gold? 

George  slyly  avoided  any  contact  with 
these  people;  and,  instead  of  approaching 
their  huts  and  soliciting  the  hospitality  of 
the  occupants,  he  always  passed  them,  often 
describing  a  large  circle,  so  as  to  make  sure 
of  escaping  every  human  eye.  Instead  of 
travelling  by  day,  as  he  had  hitherto  done, 
he  travelled  by  night,  and  kept  himself  con- 
cealed during  the  hours  of  daylight.  He 
had  procured  a  valuable  treasure  at  a  great 


144  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

sacrifice,  and  he  was  determined  to  watch  it 
with  Argus-eye. 

It  was  not  until  he  had  struck  a  well-trod- 
den open  road  that  he  ventured  to  pursue  his 
journey  by  daylight ;  for  here  the  number  of 
travellers  was  large  and  he  feared  no  sudden 
surprise.  The  very  publicity  afforded  him 
protection  against  individuals  who  in  the 
heart  of  the  forest  would  not  fear  detec- 
tion. 

Inns  became  more  numerous,  but  George 
universally  avoided  these,  and  never  took 
even  a  night's  lodging  in  one  of  them.  He 
believed  himself  surrounded  on  every  side  by 
villains.  Since  Anton's  perfidy  he  had  ceased 
to  trust  any  and  every  human  being.  He 
preferred  to  spend  his  nights  alone  in  some 
secluded  place,  covered  only  by  the  wide 
canopy  of  heaven.  He  never  entered  a  hotel 
unless  forced  to  do  so  by  hunger  and  thirst 
or  when  unbearable  weariness  compelled  him 


A    NEW    DISCOVERY.  145 

to  seek  temporary  rest,  and  then  he  would 
carefully  conceal  his  valuable  burden,  select 
a  quiet  corner  and  as  soon  as  possible  steal 
away  unobserved. 

His  caution  and  vigilance  finally  brought 
him  in  safety  to  a  small  town  where  he  could 
provide  himself  with  all  necessaries.  He 
purchased  mules,  weapons  and  clothing  with- 
out delay,  and  wasted  but  little  time  in  bar- 
gaining. He  promptly  paid  for  all  with  raw 
gold,  and  to  escape  attention  he  ordered  the 
four  mules  which  he  deemed  necessary  to 
transport  his  wealth  to  be  sent  to  a  hotel  out- 
side of  the  town,  where  he  expected  to  take 
possession  of  them  an  hour  later.  This  done, 
he  quietly  but  hastily  left  the  town  for  some 
secret  spot  in  the  midst  of  the  forest.  Here 
he  first  assured  himself  that  he  was  alone 
and  unobserved ;  then  he  dug  a  deep  hole, 
in  which  he  buried  the  remainder  of  his 
gold,  yet  consisting  of  a  full  bag.  He  adopt- 

13  K 


146  THE    GOLD-SEEKER.. 

ed  this  as  a  measure  of  caution  against  any 
misfortunes  that  might  overtake  him  in  his 
attempt  to  bring  away  the  wealth  that  he  had 
hidden  before  he  left  the  interior.  This,  at 
least,  in  any  emergency  would  leave  him  fully 
twice  as  much  money  as  he  had  brought  with 
him  from  -home,  and  would  certainly  enable 
him  to  return  to  Europe. 

Relieved  in  mind  by  this  measure,  George 
stole  away  from  the  place,  and  by  a  circuitous 
route  proceeded  to  the  house  where  the  seller 
of  the  mules  had  promised  to  await  his  ar- 
rival. He  mounted  the  strongest  animal  and 
hastened  off  without  further  delay,  leading 
the  other  three  mules  behind  him. 

It  was  with  a  heart  full  of  happy  anticipa- 
tion that  he  again  ventured  toward  the  wild 
interior  through  which  he  had  so  lately  trav- 
elled with  bleeding  feet  and  a  mind  filled  with 
painful  apprehensions.  His  longing  for  wealth 
was  now  more  intense  than  it  had  ever  been 


A    NEW    DISCOVERY. 

before,  and  he  cherished  well-founded  hopes 
that  his  desires  would  be  satisfied  even  to  a 
surfeit.  True,  he  was  all  alone  in  the  gloomy 
and  dangerous  forests,  but  he  was  well  armed 
and  richly  provided  with  all  the  necessaries 
for  his  adventure,  and,  being  alone,  he  had 
no  need  to  fear  the  treachery  of  a  compan- 
ion. 

Thus  buoyed  by  hope,  courage  and  a  bold 
determination  to  succeed,  George  prosecuted 
his  dreary  journey,  and  hastened  toward  the 
distant  hiding-place  of  his  dazzling  idol.  He 
met  with  no  obstacles,  and  by  the  waymarks 
which  he  had  made  at  various  points  he  had 
no  difficulty  in  finding  the  route.  He  lost  no 
time  but  what  was  absolutely  needed  for  rest 
for  his  animals,  and  his  urgent  impatience 
soon  brought  him  to  the  dry  bed  of  the 
stream  that  flowed  from  the  gold-reservoir, 
and  which  directed  him  to  the  heights  where 
his  rich  ore  lay  buried, 


148  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

He  tethered  his  mules  at  the  foot  of  the 
rock  and  nimbly  ascended  the  steep  declivity. 
He  reached  the  top  wearied  out,  but  hurried- 
ly proceeded  to  the  group  of  trees  whose 
branches  sheltered  his  gold.  The  ground 
had  not  been  disturbed  since  he  had  left  it, 
and  a  few  minutes  of  labor  again  revealed 
to  his  view  the  bright,  shining  lustre  of  the 
precious  metal.  The  sight  filled  him  with 
ecstatic  joy.  He  hastily  and  greedily  went 
to  work,  opened  all  the  holes,  and  labored 
incessantly  until  every  particle  of  hoarded 
gold  was  stowed  away  in  his  bags.  This 
cost  him  no  little  exertion  and  considerable 
time. 

Now  he  need  but  carry  the  sacks  on  his 
shoulders  down  into  the  valley  and  load 
them  on  the  mules.  Twilight  already  cast 
its  shadow  through  the  dense  wood,  and 
night  would  soon  set  in.  George,  therefore, 
deemed  it  best  to  suspend  further  operations 


A   NEW   DISCOVERY.  149 

for  the  day  and  early  to  seek  rest  from  his 
severe  toil.  He  gathered  his  gold-sacks 
about  him,  took  one  of  them  for  a  pillow, 
and  now  rolled  on  a  bed  which,  hard  as  it 
was,  he  would  not  have  exchanged  for  the 
softest  down  of  the  eider-duck. 

Amid  the  vastness  of  his  fortune  he  slept 
soundly  and  sweetly  till  next  morning,  when 
the  early  rays  of  the  sun,  falling  on  his  face, 
awakened  him.  Now  he  sprang  up  quickly, 
and  at  once  proceeded  to  lug  his  gold-bags 
down  the  crevice  into  the  valley,  where  he 
loaded  his  mules  with  them. 

While  he  was  in  the  act  of  starting  his 
heavily-laden  beasts,  there  was  suddenly 
thrown  over  him  a  loop  which  threw  him 
on  the  ground.  He  howled  with  rage  and 
fright,  and  before  he  could  recover  from  the 
torpor  into  which  this  surprise  had  thrown 
him  he  was  bound  hands  and  feet  with 
ropes  and  lay  helpless  as  a  child. 

13* 


I5O  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

"  Infamous  villain  !"  cried  George ;  "  heart- 
less, degraded  scoundrel !  If  you  must  rob 
me,  also  take  my  life." 

"Ah,  senor!"  replied  the  fellow;  "don't 
trouble  yourself.  Give  yourself  no  concern 
about  that.  Death  will  come  to  you  soon 
enough  without  my  aid,  for  you  need  not 
calculate  on  any  assistance  in  this  remote 
wilderness.  Behave  yourself  well;  and  if 
ever  you  get  into  a  condition  again  to  buy 
mules,  apply  to  me  freely  and  boldly." 

George  now  recognized  in  this  robber  the 
horse-dealer  from  whom  he  had  purchased 
the  animals. 

.   "Scoundrel  that  you  are,"  exclaimed  he, 
"you  have  followed  me  to  rob  me." 

"  Si,  sefior — exactly,"  replied  the  ragamuf- 
fin. "  It  was  very  easy  to  see  that  you  must 
have  struck  fortune  in  some  place  to  need 
four  mules.  You  came  ragged  and  tattered  ; 
you  paid  me  in  ore.  I  at  once  surmised  that 


A   NEW   DISCOVERY.  !$! 

you  had  somewhere  discovered  a  valuable 
mine  and  were  buying  the  mules  to  transport 
the  gold,  and,  as  gold  is  a  very  valuable  com- 
modity, I  concluded  to  follow  you,  which 
was  a  very  easy  thing  to  do.  The  sixteen 
hoof-tracks  left  by  your  mules  made  a  very 
marked  road,  and  I  could  easily  follow,  you 
unsuspected  until  you  reached  the  spot.  I 
followed  you  even  up  on  the  heights.  I 
saw  you  dig  the  treasure  out  of  the  earth 
and  noticed  how  free  from  care  you  rested 
on  your  bed  of  gold.  You  must  have  had 
a  precious  night's  sleep,  sefior,  for  not  even 
kings  can  often  sleep  on  such  riches.  I 
might  have  murdered  you  in  your  sleep,  but 
then  a  fellow  has  a  conscience ;  and,  besides, 
I  wanted  you  first  to  carry  the  gold  down 
into  the  gulch  and  save  me  that  trouble. 
You  have  done  everything  well,  sefior,  and 
I  really  feel  myself  indebted  to  you  for  the 
pains  you  have  taken  for  my  benefit.  Be 


152  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

happy,  sefior;  amuse  yourself  here  as  best 
you  can,  and  don't  entertain  any  hard  feel- 
ings against  me  because  I  must  leave  you. 
You  know  it  is  quite  a  distance  to  my  home. 
The  Lord  save  you,  sefior !" 

The  villain  bowed  to  George  with  an  im- 
pudent sneer,  and  without  one  look  of 
compassion  urged  on  the  mules  and  soon 
disappeared  behind  the  nearest  thicket  with 
everything — gold  and  all — that  George  had 
accumulated. 

George  was  now  seized  with  frantic  de- 
spair. He  raved,  he  shouted  and  howled, 
and  tried  every  means  to  break  his  bonds. 
But  all  his  efforts  were  in  vain.  The  robber 
no  longer  heard  him,  and  the  ropes  refused 
to  break. 

Rich  as  Crcesus  but  a  moment  before, 
George  was  now  robbed  of  all  he  had.  Even 
his  liberty  was  gone,  and  he  saw  before  him 
not  a  glimmer  of  hope — nothing  but  a  miser- 


A   NEW,  DISCOVERY.  153 

able,  wretched  death.  What  could  he  hope 
for  in  this  wild,  desolate  region,  so  remote 
from  any  human  habitation  that  the  foot  of 
man  might  not  again  tread  it  for  years  ?  He 
shuddered  at  the  thought  of  the  fearful  death 
now  impending.  Never  before,  in  all  his 
trials,  did  he  so  deeply  regret  that  he  had 
ever  left  his  home.  He  had  no  anathemas 
strong  enough  for  his  thirst  of  gold,  which 
had  led  him  into  these  terrors  and  dangers. 
But  regret  came  too  late.  Gnashing  his 
teeth  and  wailing  in  utter  abject  dismay, 
George  repeated  his  despairing  efforts  to 
break  his  fetters;  but  the  tenacious  ropes 
mocked  every  attempt,  until,  exhausted,  he. 
sank  into  a  swoon-like  stupor  which  left 
him  unconscious  for  several  hours. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

NEW  JOYS  AND  NEW  SORROWS. 

IT  was  near  noon  when  George  awoke 
from  his  stupor.  The  piercing  rays  of 
the  sun  fell  with  full  fervor  upon  his  head, 
and  in  his  exposed  condition  he  was  subject- 
ed to  terrible  suffering.  The  scorching  heat 
was  unendurable,  and  he  was  forced  either  to 
remove  from  the  spot  or  miserably  to  perish 
in  the  greatest  of  agony. 

Not  far  from  him,  and  close  to  the  rugged 
precipice  with  its  many  sharp  edges  and 
points,  a  shady  bower  arched  over  a  small 
fountain  gently  flowing  from  out  the  rocks. 
Here  he  saw  a  prospect  of  quenching  his 
burning  thirst  if  he  could  but  reach  it.  With 
powerful  efforts  he  finally  succeeded  in  drag-' 

154 


NEW  JOYS  AND  NEW  SORROWS.     155 

ging  himself  to  this  place  of  shelter.  He 
brought  his  parched  lips  to  the  edge  of  the 
spring  and  greedily  sipped  the  clear,  cool 
water. 

This  simple  draught  so  refreshed  and  re- 
vived him  that  new  hope  dawned  in  his  soul. 
If  he  could  only  free  himself  from  the  ropes, 
he  thought  that  he  might  perhaps  be  able  to 
overtake  the  villain  who  had  so  remorselessly 
plundered  him ;  for  he  was  now  sufficiently 
acquainted  with  the  wilderness  to  warrant 
him  in  penetrating  it  alone.  He  exercised  all 
his  ingenuity  to  effect  his  release.  That  he 
could  not  break  the  ropes  by  mere  strength 
his  previous  efforts  had  already  convinced 
him,  but  by  patient  rubbing  against  a  sharp- 
edged  stone  he  might  possibly  succeed  in 
wearing  them  through ;  and  to  this  he  ap- 
plied himself.  If  he  could  but  free  one 
hand,  he  might  manage  the  rest  without  dif- 
ficulty. He  succeeded  in  crawling  up  to  the 


THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

rock,  and,  bearing  his  back  against  one  of 
the  sharp  edges  of  the  stone,  he  commenced 
sawing  with  all  his  might.  It  was  hard  and 
painful  work,  for  he  could  not  bring  the  rope 
in  contact  with  the  stone  without  lacerating 
his  hands.  But  it  was  his  only  means  of 
salvation.  A  terrible  death  by  slow  starva- 
tion stared  him  in  the  face,  and  this  induced 
him  to  shun  neither  pain  nor  exertion. 

He  thus  toiled  in  suffering  for  hours,  when 
he  felt  one  of  the  ropes  giving  way.  He  gave 
one  tremendous  pull,  and  his  hands  were 
freed.  To  untie  his  feet  was  now  an  easy 
matter.  He  did  not  stop  to  undo  the  knots, 
but  from  his  pocket  drew  forth  a  knife,  with 
which  he  cut  the  remaining  fetters.  Rejoi- 
cing over  his  success,  he  tried  to  jump,  but 
found  that  the  long  tight  lacing  which  he 
had  endured  had  so  cramped  his  feet  that 
he  was  unable  to  stand,  and  he  staggered 
and  fell  to  the  ground  again. 


NEW   JOYS   AND   NEW   SORROWS.  !$/ 

It  was  some  time,  and  only  after  a  thorough 
rubbing  of  his  limbs,  before  he  was  again  able 
to  stand  erect.  Walking  was  still  difficult,  and 
for  that  day  at  least  it  was  impossible  for 
him  to  enter  upon  any  journey.  He  looked 
around  for  some  roots  wherewith  to  appease 
his  now  craving  appetite,  and  after  resting 
until  the  following  morning  he  started,  re- 
freshed and  strengthened.  He  hastened  on 
with  diligence,  spurred  by  the  hope  that  he 
might  yet  overtake  the  heartless  miscreant 
with  his  plunder,  and  perhaps  recover  his 
lost  treasure.  His  anticipations  were  not 
wholly  unfounded ;  for,  although  the  villain 
had  now  the  advantage  of  twenty-four  hours' 
start  and  the  mules  with  which  to  travel,  the 
animals  were  heavily  laden,  and  the  robber 
certainly  had  no  idea  that  George  would  so 
soon  free  himself  from  his  bonds,  and  hence 
would  feel  no  necessity  of  overhaste  to  es- 
cape him. 
14 


158  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

George  pursued  him  with  a  vengeance, 
scarcely  taking  time  to  rest,  either  by  night 
or  during  the  oppressive  heat  of  the  day ;  so 
that  on  the  fifth  day  of  his  pursuit  he  discov- 
ered the  fresh  tracks  of  the  fleeing  thief. 
About  noon  he  came  to  a  spot  where  the 
vile  wretch  had  evidently  encamped  the  night 
before,  the  mules'  tracks  crossing  one  another 
as  if  the  beasts  had  been  tethered  there. 

Besides  this,  George  found  a  few  live  coals 
among  the  ashes,  and  thus  concluded  that  the 
fugitive  broke  camp  at  a  late  hour,  and  could 
therefore  be  only  about  two  or  three  hours 
in  advance.  He  became  more  hopeful  and 
almost  grinned  at  the  idea  of  overtaking  him, 
and  swung  his  dry,  knotty  stick  with  renewed 
energy  as  he  doubled  his  pace  over  the  plain- 
ly visible  tracks  made  by  his  mules. 

He  thus  travelled  on  perhaps  for  two  hours 
longer,  when  he  was  suddenly  confronted  by 
a  sight  which  paled  his  cheeks  and  caused 


NEW   JOYS    \ND    NEW   SORROWS.  159 

his  hair  to  stand  on  end.  Close  to  the  en- 
trance of  a  narrow  rocky  ravine  in  the  road 
lay  a  human  form  covered  with  blood,  the 
face  deformed  by  horrible  gaping  wounds. 
The  man  was  dead, -or  at  least  unconscious. 
Bewildered  and  horror-struck,  he  drew  near- 
er to  the  prostrate  form,  and  shuddered  to 
recognize  in  the  murdered  man  the  thief  he 
was  pursuing — the  base  creature  who  had 
robbed  him,  and  for  whose  life-blood  his 
revengeful  heart  had  until  then  panted.  But 
every  feeling  of  revenge  left  him  as  he  gazed 
upon  that  dead  face. 

"  Merciful  God  !"  he  exclaimed ;  "  must 
this  be  the  robber's  end?  Robbed  of  his 
stolen  treasure,  and  of  his  money  besides ! 
How  much  more  fortunate  am  I !  Who 
knows  but  this  would  have  been  my  fate 
had  I  journeyed  through  here  with  my 
gold,  careless  and  happy  as  I  should  have 
been  ?" 


160  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

George  trembled  as  he  thought  of  this. 
Such  would  in  all  probability  have  been  his 
doom,  and  he  bent  down  to  see  if  life  was  ex- 
tinct. To  his  surprise,  the  victim  opened  his 
eyes,  stared  at  him,  and  a  twitching  motion 
of  his  countenance  was  visible.  He  moved 
his  lips  and  in  broken,  stifled  accents  mut- 
tered, 

"  Oh,  you —  You  have  revenge !  A 
curse — on — gold  !  Robbers — lurked — here — 
I  fell.  God — is — a  just — Judge.  You — see 
me—  Had  I — remained  honest —  Thank 
God —  Pardon  me!" 

He  ceased  to  speak.  A  tremor  ran  through 
his  body,  a  deep  sigh  escaped  him,  and  he 
was  dead. 

George  had  been  grievously  wronged  by 
this  man,  but,  now  that  he  was  dead,  he  for- 
gave him  from  the  depth  of  his  soul,  and  on 
his  bended  knees  thanked  God  for  the  pres- 
ervation of  his  own  life.  Then  he  drew  the 


NEW   JOYS   AND   NEW   SORROWS.  1 6 1 

corpse  to  one  side,  covered  it  with  leaves,  as 
he  had  no  tools  wherewith  to  dig  a  grave, 
and,  with  tears  rolling  down  his  cheeks,  left 
the  unfortunate  man — left  him  alone  in  this 
terrible  place,  himself  the  prey  of  the  most 
gloomy  thoughts,  to  prosecute  his  lonely 
journey  through  the  wilderness. 

He.  was  now  utterly  sick  and  disgusted 
with  the  rich  gold-country  and  longed  to  be 
far  away  from  it — once  more  to  be  back  in 
that  quiet,  peaceful  Christian  country  which 
he  should  never  have  left.  It  now  loomed 
up  in  his  imagination  a  gorgeous  paradise, 
compared  with  the  land  of  untold  wealth, 
whose  riches  seemed  only  to  blight,  to  stifle 
every  good  in  man,  to  fill  his  heart  with  dis- 
trust and  hatred  of  his  fellow,  to  urge  him 
to  deeds  of  shame  and  violence — to  rob- 
bery, murder  and  lust.  The  Christian  grace 
with  which  his  heart  was  imbued  had  saved 

George  from  the  commission  of  such  crimes, 
14*  L 


1 62  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

and  he  thanked  God  that  his  soul  had  been 
preserved  from  such  damning  deeds.  His 
thirst  for  wealth  was  quenched ;  he  no  longer 
cared  for  imperial  riches.  The  most  ardent 
wish  of  his  soul  now  was  once  more  to  reach 
his  dear  distant  home;  and,  should  he  be 
forced  to  return  to  it  a  pauper,  he  would 
seek  it  and  if  need  be  earn  his  daily  bread 
by  manual  toil. 

Occupied  with  such  melancholy  reflec- 
tions, George  journeyed  on  until  he  arrived 
at  the  town  where  he  had  purchased  his  last 
mules,  and  where  also  lay  buried  the  bag  of 
gold  he  had  left  after  that  purchase.  His 
treasure  was  small  compared  with  the  wealth 
he  had  possessed  and  lost,  but  now  it  was  of 
immense  value  to  him.  It  would  suffice  to 
pay  the  return  passage  to  his  native  land, 
and,  in  addition,  secure  him  a  home  where 
with  some  industry  and  economy  he  might 
lead  a  quiet,  comfortable  life  free  from  care. 


NEW  JOYS   AND   NEW  -SORROWS.  163 

But  now,  as  he  was  approaching  the  spot 
where  his  last  hope  rested,  his  heart  began 
to  throb  with  apprehension.  For  what  was 
he  to  do  if  some  one  had  discovered  his 
gold  and  robbed  him  ? 

George  dared  not  dwell  on  such  a  catas- 
trophe or  think  of  the  consequences  such  a 
terrible  loss  would  entail  on  him.  He  tim- 
idly stole  to  the  hiding-place,  almost  afraid 
to  cast  his  eyes  in  the  direction.  In  his  anx- 
ious suspense  he  earnestly  prayed  that  God 
would  save  him  from  the  dreaded  blow  of 
finding  his  treasure  gone.  He  lingered  and 
lingered  as  his  steps  brought  him  nearer  the 
momentous  spot.  His  limbs  were  fairly 
benumbed  with  fear  and  he  trembled  with 
excitement..  In  the  agony  of  his  suspense 
he  muttered,  "  O  God !  O  God !  permit  me 
to  find  this  little  treasure  once  more.  Let 
me  not  be  robbed  of  this  only  gl^am  of  hope 
left  me.  I  must  die  if  it  is  lost.  Let  only 


164  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

this  be  spared — only  this ;"  and  he  staggered 
forward,  quaking  and  gasping  for  breath. 
His  heart  felt  as  if  tied  down  in  its  cavity, 
a  cold  perspiration  dropped  from  his  brow, 
his  teeth  chattered  and  his  sight  was  almost 
dimmed  as  the  identical  spot  was  seen  at 
some  distance,  but,  observing  nothing  sus- 
picious, he  felt  a  sudden  relief  and  breathed 
freer.  He  leaped  to  the  spot  like  a  lion  upon 
his  prey  and  began  to  remove  the  earth,  which 
looked  as  if  it  had  not  been  disturbed  since 
he  had  left  it.  A  flash  of  joy  beamed  from 
his  eyes  and  an  outburst  of  ecstasy  escaped 
from  his  lips.  His  gold  was  still  there.  He 
raised  his  face  to  heaven  and  earnestly  said, 

"  My  gold  is  safe.  I  am  delivered  from 
my  hard  fate,  and,  O  God,  for  this  I  thank 
thee  from  the  depth  of  my  soul." 

Tears  of  joy,  falling  like  pearls,  streamed 
down  his  pale  cheeks — not  simply  that  he 
had  found  his  gold,  but  that  it  would  afford 


NEW   JOYS   AND   NEW   SORROWS.  165 

t3» 

him  the  means  to  return  to  his  native  land. 
The  burning  greed  for  gold  which  had 
brought  him  to  this  country,  made  him  a 
homeless  wanderer  and  had  entailed  upon 
him  so  much  misery  and  disappointment 
was  now  supplanted  by  a  deeper  longing  to 
return  home. 

Now,  for  the  first  time  after  many  days, 
did  he  feel  himself  really  fortunate — more 
fortunate  than  he  had  been  when  he  discov- 
ered his  late  enormous  wealth.  His  present 
possessions  were  unaccompanied  by  those 
harassing  feelings  of  anxiety,  fear  and  dis- 
trust which  were  incident  to  his  earlier  gains. 
His  fortune  was  now  secure,  and  the  tenure 
by  which  he  held  it  as  sure,  he  felt,  as  the 
sparkling  gold  at  his  feet,  which  he  gathered 
up  with  almost  quaking  hand  to  store  away 
for  transportation.  This  done,  he  hurriedly 
left  the  small  town  and  started  for  San  Fran- 
cisco, where  he  expected  to  find  ready  and 


1 66  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

quick  passage  to  Europe.  His  yearning  to 
reach  home  had  become  so  overpowering 
that  he  allowed  himself  no  rest,  but  trav- 
elled day  and  night  without  ceasing.  He 
was  utterly  exhausted — tired  to  death,  as 
he  expressed  it — but  a  nervous,  feverish 
strength  seemed  to  uphold  him  until  he  saw 
the  housetops  of  San  Francisco  rise  up  be- 
fore him ;  and  he  staggered  in  the  streets 
of  the  city  a  tottering  wreck. 

His  overtasked  powers  were  now  com- 
pletely spent.  His  head  became  dizzy;  he 
was  pale  as  death  as  he  made  the  last  spas- 
modic efforts  to  drag  himself  along,  and  was 
about  to  fall  to  the  ground  in  a  swoon  when 
he  was  embraced  by  a  pair  of  strong  arms, 
and  a  deep,  manly,  sympathizing  voice  in- 
quired, 

"  What  ails  you,  my  unfortunate  man  ? 
Who  are  you?" 

George   faintly  raised   his   eyes,  and  saw 


NEW   JOYS   AND    NEW   SORROWS.  l6/ 

in  the  benevolent  and  reverent  countenance 
and  in  the  sacred  garb  of  his  rescuer  that 
he  was  a  monk,  whose  kindly  face  beamed 
with  heartfelt  philanthropy  and  humanity. 

"Save  and  protect  me)"  stammered  the 
unfortunate  youth,  and  then  sank  in  uncon- 
sciousness into  the  arms  of  the  worthy  old 
man. 

The  priest  gently  laid  him  on  the  ground 
and  by  a  simple  nod  summoned  some  labor- 
ers close  by,  who  at  his  instance  raised  the 
prostrate  and  unconscious  form  of  George 
and  bore  it  to  a  monastery  not  far  distant, 
whose  gates  were  opened  at  their  approach. 
George  was  carried  in,  but  the  strain  of  long 
excitement  and  over-exertion  had  now  cul- 
minated in  a  serious  fever,  and  it  was  many 
days  before  he  again  awakened  to  conscious- 
ness and  to  new  life. 

One  morning  he  opened  wide  his  eyes  and 
found  himself  on  a  soft  bed  in  a  small,  nar- 


1 68  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

row  chamber.  Through  a  high  bow-window, 
exposing  thick,  heavy  walls,  fell  a  clear,  golden 
ray  of  the  morning  sun  with  dazzling  quiver 
upon  the  floor  and  the  plain  furniture  of  the 
room.  This  latter  consisted  simply  of  a 
chair,  a  table  and  an  image  of  Christ  carved 
in  wood,  which  hung  on  the  wall  opposite 
his  bed. 

George  was  amazed  at  these  strange  sur- 
roundings, and,  placing  his  hand  on  his  brow, 
he  tried  to  recall  how  he  had  come  hither. 
But  memory  returned  slowly,  and  he  pon- 
dered in  vain  for  some  minutes.  Suddenly 
a  flash  of  terror  overcame  him,  and  he  ex- 
claimed in  agony, 

"O  Lord,  the  gold!  Unfortunate  me,  I 
am  robbed  again !" 

He  attempted  to  spring  from  his  bed, 
when  he  felt  a  hand  resting  on  his  shoul- 
ders and  heard  a  gentle  and  soothing  voice 
say, 


NEW  JOYS  AND  NEW  SORROWS.     169 

"Compose  yourself,  young  man.  Your 
gold  is  in  safe  keeping,  and  will  be  returned 
to  you  as  soon  as  you  need  it." 

George  cast  a  perplexed  look  about  him, 
and  saw  standing  at  the  head  of  the  bed  the 
venerable  monk  who  had  found  him  falling 
on  the  street  and  thence  had  borne  him  to 
the  monastery.  With  some  confusion  he 
asked  him, 

"Who  are  you?" 

"  Your  friend,"  answered  the  monk.  "  Call 
me  Pater  Ccelestus,  and  you  have  my  right 
name." 

"Ah,  Pater  Ccelestus,  I  remember  now," 
replied  George,  to  whom  full  consciousness 
was  gradually  returning.  "You  have  be- 
friended me." 

"  Yes,"  remarked  the  monk,  "  as  was  my 
Christian  duty — nothing  more.  Without  my 
aid  you  might  perhaps  have  perished  on  the 
street.  But  of  this  some  other  time.  When 

15 


THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

you  look  for  your  money,  just  open  the 
drawer  of  that  table.  In  that  I  have  placed 
everything  I  found  on  you,  and  not  a  grain 
of  the  gold  has  been  lost.  We  monks  do 
not  need  the  seductive  metal,  for  we  have 
taken  the  vow  of  poverty." 

"  Thank  Gpd  !"  muttered  George,  glancing 
heavenward.  "  My  last  hope,  then,  has  not 
been  lost." 

With  a  sad  and  sympathetic  expression 
of  countenance  the  monk  beheld  the  sick 
man. 

"You  seem  to  love  gold  too  well,"  said 
he,  in  tones  of  mild  reproach.  "  Instead  of 
thanking  the  Lord  for  your  recovery,  you 
thank  him  for  the  preservation  of  mean, 
perishable  gold.  You  do  not  act  wisely  in 
this  respect,  my  friend." 

With  reddened  face  George  replied: 

"Oh,  it  is  not  the  gold  that  renders  me 
so  happy,  but  simply  the  hope  that  with  it 


NEW  JOYS   AND   NEW  SORROWS.  I? I 

I  may  be  able  to  return  to  my  home.  God 
has  already  cured  me  of  my  avarice.  Be- 
lieve me,  Pater  Ccelestus." 

"  Good !  good !  I  believe  you,"  answered 
pater,  pleasantly.  "  You  will  tell  me  about 
that  some  other  time,  but  now  keep  quiet 
and  take  this  drink.  If  you  are  to  recover 
speedily,  the  utmost  precaution  must  be 
taken." 

Leaning  on  his  pillow,  George  took  the 
medicine,  and  soon  again  slept  sweetly. 

In  a  few  days  he  had  so  far  recovered  as 
to  be  able  to  leave  his  bed.  He  then  told 
his  benefactor  what  prompted  him  to  leave 
his  Christian  home  and  what  sad  experiences 
he  had  made  during  his  wanderings. 

Ccelestus  heard  his  story  through,  and 
then  lovingly  remarked, 

"You  have  indeed  reason  to  be  thankful 
for  escaping  the  evils  you  have  escaped. 
Your  determination  to  leave  home  to  seek 


1/2  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

a  fortune  in  a  new  land  was  more  than  fool- 
ish :  it  was  wicked.  What,  now,  is  fortune, 
my  son  ?  To  do  right  and  be  content — that 
is  fortune.  The  world's  grandeur  and  riches 
are  simply  rocks  on  which  readily  split  the 
true  fortune  of  the  soul,  which  consists  of 
peace  with  God  and  with  self.  The  Saviour 
of  the  world  teaches  us  the  same  lesson  when 
he  says, '  It  is  easier  for  a  camel  to  go  through 
the  eye  of  a  needle  than  for  a  rich  man  to 
enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God''  Riches 
bring  obligations,  my  son ;  and  how  can  he 
who  is  enriched  and  fails  in  fulfilling  these 
obligations  hope  to  find  happiness  here  or 
hereafter  ?  Gold,  like  the  glory  of  the  world, 
is  only  an  enticement  to  that  which  is  evil 
and  sinful.  Happy  is  the  man  who  is  in 
possession  of  wealth  and  shuns  the  tempter. 
He  is  deserving  of  greater  happiness,  for  he 
had  to  contend  against  greater  temptations. 
Our  esteem  and  regard  for  such  a  one  are 


NEW  JOYS  AND  NEW  SORROWS.     1/3 

also  greater,  but  to  envy  him  for  possessing 
a  larger  portion  of  worldly  good  is  the  part 
of  a  fool.  Such  a  fool  you  were,  my  son. 
God  had  bestowed  on  you  the  purest  and 
richest  fortune — a  respectable  maintenance 
and  the  love  of  a  true  and  devoted  brother : 
what  more  could  you  have  wished  without 
being  ungrateful  to  your  Maker?  Thank 
him  now  that  he  has  opened  your  eyes 
and  purified  your  heart,  for  verily  an  indul- 
gent father  has  the  Father  in  heaven  been 
to  you." 

George  really  no  longer  needed  exhorta- 
tions of  this  character,  but  they  served  to 
strengthen  and  confirm  him  in  his  resolu- 
tion to  return  home. 

When  he  had  fully  recovered,  he  enrolled 
his  name  as  passenger  on  a  steamer  which 
lay  ready  to  sail  for  Europe,  and  prepared 
to  take  leave  of  the  honest  monk  who  had 
saved  his  life  and  strengthened  him  in  his 

15* 


174  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

good  purposes.  He  divided  his  gold  into 
two  equal  parts,  and  offered  him  one  of 
them  as  a  gift. 

With  smiling  face  Pater  Coelestus  refused 
the  kindly-intended  offering. 

"  Have  you  forgotten,  my  son,  that  my 
life  is  devoted  to  poverty  ?"  said  he.  "  The 
riches  of  Golconda  could  not  make  me  as 
happy  as  the  consciousness  of  having  treat- 
ed you  in  a  kind  and  Christian  manner. 
Such  a  consciousness  cannot  be  bought. 
Mark  it,  my  son :  To  do  right  and  be  con- 
tent renders  one  fortunate — nothing  besides ; 
gold,  the  tempter  of  mankind,  least  of  all. 
Depart  in  peace,  and  let  your  conversation  . 
be  in  heaven." 

With  eyes  suffused  with  tears,  George 
promised  the  monk  that  he  would  ever 
be  mindful  of  his  instructions.  Then  they 
parted. 

The  vessel  put  to  sea,  and  soon  there  dis- 


NEW  JOYS  AND  NEW  SORROWS.     1/5 

appeared  from  the  view  of  George  the  rug- 
ged coast  of  California,  where  he,  thanks  to 
a  wise  leading  of  Providence,  although  fail- 
ing to  find  the  coveted  fortune,  learned  a 
lesson  designed  to  render  him  truly  fortu- 
nate for  all  time  to  come,  and  to  prepare 
him  for  eternal  happiness. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
BROTHER-LOVE. 

A  IAIN  had  spring  returned  and  strewed 
her  blessings  over  the  wide  earth. 
A  youthful  traveller  with  a  heavy  thorn- 
stick  in  his  hand  arid  a  small  leather  knap- 
sack on  his  shoulder  took  a  path  leading 
from  the  shore  into  one  of  the  richest  and 
loveliest  valleys  of  the  Rhine.  His  dress 
was  poor — in  fact,  ragged.  His  bearing  and 
appearance  were  those  of  a  beggar,  but  his 
poverty  and  raggedness  seemed  to  concern 
the  youth  little.  His  eyes  sparkled  with  de- 
light as,  standing  on  the  brow  of  a  hill,  he 
viewed  the  blissful  region  of  country  below 
him.  His  cheeks  glowed  with  excitement, 

176 


BROTHER-LOVE.  1 77 

a  hot  tear  came  into  his  eye,  and,  spreading 
out  his  arms,  he  cried, 

"  My  fatherland — my  dear,  dear  home ! 
Oh,  many  thousand  thousand  greetings !" 

His  countenance  brightened  as  he  cast  his 
eyes  hither  and  thither.  There  was  the  mill 
amid  a  profusion  of  blossoming  fruit  trees, 
there  the  vineyards,  and  beyond  the  stream 
the  fields  covered  with  the  early  crops  and 
presenting  the  appearance  of  a  beautifully- 
woven  tapestry,  and  there  the  small  but  in- 
viting dwelling  once  his  habitation. 

The  traveller's  eye  grew  dim;  a  dark 
shadow  flitted  across  his  face  and  the  smile 
of  joy  died  on  his  lips. 
.  "Yes,  the  house — that  house!  Had  I 
only  never  left  it!"  sighed  he.  "What  a 
deluded,  infatuated  wretch  I  was!" 

He  turned  his  eyes  from  the  paternal  roof 
to  the  mill,  which  stood  as  peaceful  as  ever 
on  the  splashing  stream. 


178  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

"  Courage,  courage !"  he  exclaimed.  "  If 
I  but  find  love  as  it  once  existed,  God  will 
help  me  in  the  future.  But,"  continued  he, 
in  thoughtful  mood,  "dare  I  venture  to  ap- 
pear as  a  beggar  before  my  brother  and  ask  a 
place  at  his  hearth,  after  spurning  his  earn- 
est pleadings  not  to  leave  my  home  ?  Dare 
I  be  offended  if  he  refuses  to  receive  me  to 
his  heart  and  into  his  house?  The  step  I 
am  about  to  take  is  certainly  a  critical  one ; 
and  if  his  love  does  not  bear  the  test,  I  am 
undone." 

Again  he  sank  into  deep  meditation,  and 
remained  thus  a  good  while. 

"The  experiment  must  be  made,"  he  ex- 
claimed, finally.  "  The  venture,  it  is  true,  is 
great,  but  the  gain  will  also  be  proportion- 
ately great,  and  I — trust  his  heart.  For- 
ward, then." 

With  rapid  strides  George  hastened  up 
the  road  in  the  direction  of  the  mill.  A 


BROTHER-LOVE.  1 79 

quarter  of  an  hour  afterward  he  heard  its 
lively  clappering  up  and  down  the  valley, 
and  five  minutes  later  he  stood  before  it, 
under  the  stately  linden  where  Ernst  in  ear- 
lier years  had  so  often  spoken  to  him  words 
of  wisdom.  Here  he  stood,  his  breast  heav- 
ing with  emotion,  and  listened.  Amid  the 
rattling  noise  of  the  mill-wheels  he  recog- 
nized the  voice  of  his  brother,  and  now,  as 
if  struck  by  a  thunderbolt,  his  limbs  quiv- 
ered, his  frame  shook  and  the  blood  for- 
sook his  cheeks. 

Ernst  at  this  juncture  stepped  to  the  door, 
and  his  first  glance  fell  on  George,  who,  sup- 
porting himself  with  his  thorn-stick,  stood 
perhaps  twenty  feet  away,  clad  in  wretched 
attire. 

"  Merciful  Lord  !"  he  burst  out.     "  George  ! 

brother !  is  it  you  ?" 

i 
Overcome  by  the  joy  of  the  meeting,  the 

strong  man  felt  his  limbs  totter,  and  he  was 


ISO  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

forced  to  support  himself  by  the  door-posts. 
But  he  stretched  forth  his  arms  to  his  broth- 
er, and  his  eyes  glowed  with  the  fire  of  his 
early  love. 

George  was  strongly  tempted  to  throw  him- 
self into  the  open  arms,  but  restrained  him- 
self, saying, , 

"  It  is  I,  Ernst,  but  you  see  me  poor,  rag- 
ged and  dependent." 

"  Poor  did  you  say  ?  You  are  not  poor ;" 
and  Ernst,  drawing  himself  up  erect,  at  once 
hastened  to  George  to  give  him  a  warm  fra- 
ternal embrace.  "  Oh  how  my  heart  throbs 
for  joy  over  your  return !"  said  he. 

"  But  I  am  poor,  Ernst.  Do  you  not  com- 
prehend me  ?"  stammered  George,  while,  from 
the  excitement  of  the  occasion  and  the  strong 
love  he  bore  to  his  brother,  his  own  heart 
overpowered  him.  "  I  am  poverty-stricken ; 
my  whole  possession,  to  the  last  copper,  is 
squandered." 


BROTHER-LOVE.  1 8 1 

"  If  you  are  really  impoverished,  then  you 
are  doubly  welcome,"  responded  Ernst,  and 
again  embraced  him.  "What  are  gold  and 
property  as  compared  with  love  ?  Better — a 
thousand  times  better — it  were  to  lose,  if 
need  be,  the  former  that  the  latter  may  re- 
main. The  fact  that  you  have  returned  to 
me  is  evidence  that  you  still  love  me.  Oh 
how  often  have  I  longed  for  this  moment!" 

"Have  you,  brother — have  you  really?" 
exclaimed  George.  "Well,  God  be  praised, 
then  nothing  has  been  lost;  for  I  have  at 
least  learned  this — that  contentment  is  the 
secret  of  happiness.  I  will  henceforth  eat 
my  bread  in  the  sweat  of  my  face  and  be 
satisfied." 

"And  then  you  will  also  be  fortunate, 
George,"  remarked  a  voice  behind  him ;  and 
when  he  looked  back,  he  saw  it  was  Parson 
Seebach,  who  greeted  the  prodigal  with  eyes 
beaming  with  joy.  No  one  could  have  been 

16 


1 82  THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

more  welcome  to  the  brothers  in  their  new 
covenant  of  love,  as  a  third  party,  than  the 
worthy  parson.  Ernst  drew  him  and  George 
to  a  seat  under  the  linden,  and  now  asked 
his  brother  to  tell  them  how  he  fared  during 
his  absence  from  home.  George  told  all,  ex- 
cept that  of  his  great  treasures  he  had  still 
preserved  a  part.  But  he  spoke  of  Pater 
Ccelestus,  telling  how  during  his  sickness 
he  nursed  him,  and  whilst  healing  his  sick 
body  he  also  healed  his  sick  soul. 

Ernst  and  the  parson  heartily  rejoiced  over 
this,  and  blessed  the  devout  monk  who  had 
been  instrumental  in  doing  so  much  good 
to  one  whom  they  both  dearly  loved. 

Then  Ernst  arose  to  order  supper  under 
the  linden,  as  he  said,  and  entered  the  mill. 
The  parson  smiled  as  he  saw  him  go.  The 
table  was  soon  spread,  and  Ernst  returned 
cherishing  a  happy  thought  in  his  breast. 

"And  now  promise  me,  George,"  said  he, 


BROTHER-LOVE.  183 

"  that  you  will  sleep  at  least  the  first  night 
under  my  roof." 

"  Only  the  first,  brother  ?"  replied  George. 
"  I  fear  you  will  have  me  oftener  on  your 
hands." 

"As  often  as  you  please ;  you  are  naturally 
welcome,"  answered  Ernst.  "  But  the  prom- 
ise for  the  first  night  I  must  have.  I  beg  of 
you  give  it  to  me." 

"  Why,  certainly,"  said  George. 

"Now,  then,  take  this,"  remarked  Ernst, 
smiling  and  handing  his  brother  a  docu- 
ment. "It  is  yours." 

"  Mine  ?"  inquired  George,  with  a  look  of 
surprise,  and  hastily  glanced  at  the  contents 
of  the  paper.  "  How  is  this  ?  The  deed  for 
my  former  home?  You  bought  it,  Ernst? 
How  fortunate — oh  how  very  fortunate !" 

"  Certainly  I  bought  it — not  for  myself, 
however,  but  for  you,  in  case  you  returned, 
for  which  I  ever  secretly  longed  and  hoped. 


184  -    THE   GOLD-SEEKER. 

Keep  it;  it  is  yours  as  before.  Only,"  add- 
ed he,  with  smiling  face,  "  you  must  keep 
the  promise  you  made  about  the  first  night 
at  home." 

George  was  bewildered  by  this  act  of  fra- 
ternal regard;  his  countenance  alternated  in 
quick  succession  between  pale  and  red.  At 
length,  after  having  somewhat  recovered  from 
the  sudden  shock  he  had  received,  he  ex- 
claimed with  broken,  shattered  accents, 

"  Ernst,  brother,  you  have  done  this  for 
me  who  left  you  so  indifferently?  Oh,  broth- 
er-love and  brother-fealty  !"  burst  out  George, 
the  fountain  of  feeling  being  stirred  to  its 
depths.  "  Unspeakably  foolish  I  was,  to  say 
the  least,  to  prefer  to  such  love  perishable 
metal.  Pardon  my  folly,  brother.  I  have 
wronged  you — wronged  you  in  every  way. 
Still,  what  happiness  it  affords  me  to  have 
found  you  so  loving,  so  entirely  faithful,  a 
brother!" 


BROTHER-LOVE.  185 

"  How  have  you  wronged  me  in  every 
way?"  inquired  Ernst. 

"  I  deceived  you,"  said  George.  "  See 
here,"  he  continued,  and  poured  a  small 
heap  of  pure  gold  on  the  ground.  "  See,  I 
am  not  poor — not  so  poor  as  I  seem  to  be. 
I  possess  enough  to  render  me  reasonably 
comfortable.  I  withheld  this  fact  from  you 
to  ascertain  whether  the  poor  brother  were 
welcome  on  his  return,  and  whether  you 
still  retained  for  him  a  place  in  your  affec- 
tions. Pardon  this  deception,  or  you  will 
destroy  my  peace  of  mind." 

Would  Ernst  pardon  the  penitent  brother  ? 
The  two  gave  each  other  fresh  pledges  of 
fraternal  devotion,  and  Herr  Parson  Seebach 
blessed  the  bond,  so  that  after  such  tests,  sac- 
rifices and  experiences  their  days  on  earth 
might  be  peaceful.  George  truly  found  at 
home  the  fortune  which  abroad  he  had  so 
eagerly,  and  yet  so  vainly,  sought. 

16* 


1 86  THE    GOLD-SEEKER. 

As  is  the  lot  of  all,  even  of  those  leading 
the  most  quiet  and  peaceful  lives,  dark  and 
weary  days  often  came  to  George  even  after 
this,  but  his  recollections  enabled  him  to 
receive  them  with  a  pious  joy;  and  by  his 
well-doing,  moderation  and  a  Christian  self- 
denial  he  was.  able  to  bear  all  with  fortitude 
and  live  a  happy  and  blessed  life.  He  no 
longer  coveted  great  wealth.  The  deep  and 
well-tested  love  of  his  brother  was  to  him 
the  most  valuable  earthly  treasure  he  could 
conceive  of.  Before  it  all  other  riches  dwin- 
dled to  naught. 

The  worthy  parson,  after  spending  pleas- 
ant hours  with  the  brothers,  on  returning  to 
his  quiet  parsonage  used  to  mutter  to  him- 
self, 

"  Behold  how  good  and  how  pleasant  it  is 
for  brethren  to  dwell  together  in  unity !" 

THE   END. 


